The Wynne Prize is an art prize, awarded annually by the Art Gallery of New South Wales and is for the best landscape painting of Australian scenery in oils or water colours or for the best example of figure sculpture by Australian artists. This year’s winner is Sylvia Ken.
Ken has been painting at Tjala Arts since its establishment in 1999. Tjala Arts is located in Amata community, in far North West South Australia on the APY Lands. Artists from Tjala Arts are recognised as contemporary painters who are at the forefront of the Western Desert movement. Sylvia Ken is also a member of the Ken Sisters Collaborative, who previously won the Wynne Prize 2016.
Known for their vibrant use of colour and energetic mark making, works by Tjala artists are held in numerous public institutions including the National Gallery of Australia, Art Gallery of NSW, National Gallery of Victoria, Artbank and the Art Gallery of South Australia.
They predominantly paint the Seven Sisters Story, a Tjukurpa Story (Creation Story) about the constellations of Pleiades and Orion. The sisters are the constellation of Pleiades and the other star Orion is said to be Nyiru or Nyirunya (described as a lusty or bad man).
This year’s Highly Commended Prize went to Natasha Bieniek. Bieniek’s work consists of meticulous oil paintings. These jewel-like works offer a contemporary take on historical painting traditions of illuminated manuscripts and miniature portraits of the 16th century. Their diminutive scale and glossy surfaces also reflect on the way we view images today, bringing to mind smart phones and tablet screens. Her most recent paintings explore the relationship between human beings and the natural world.
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