UCOL BLOG

Awards were made this week to the top Fine Arts graduates and students showing at Whanganui’s Federal Gallery, under the banner of Real NZ Art.

The show is part of the REAL Whanganui Festival, with Whanganui UCOL lending the Federal Gallery to show it.

Lecturer Rita Dibert explained that the exhibition consists of 81 works from current and former students and current staff of the Quay School of the Arts.

They vary from sculpture and painting to glass and photography, and were judged by WHMilbank Gallery owner Bill Milbank. Ms Dibert told the Whanganui Chronicle that some art schools turned out students whose work all looked the same, but Whanganui UCOL’s Quay School of the Arts students had very individual voices. “People come through and they find themselves. They don’t end up doing work that mirrors their tutors’. Our students really do develop identities of their own.”

Mr Milbank said there was so much good work in the show that he struggled to decide on winners.

The top overall prize went to fourth year Bachelor of Fine Arts student, painter Bridget McArthur for her colourful 3-d installation. The second went to third year Diploma of Glass Design and Production student Jo Conroy and third to Bachelor of Fine Arts Photographer student Su Hendeles. Current students Rebecca Lee Briggs (First Year BFA)and Cheleigh-Anne Dunkerton (Painting) were highly commended, and Jarrod Dent (Graduate Diploma Painting) was commended.

Sculptor Angela Tier (Bachelor of Fine Arts 2005) won the top prize for a former student, with Fiona McGowan (Painting), Catherine McDonald (Printmaking) and Cecelia Kumeroa (Photography) highly commended and Joanna Auld, Rachael Garland and Tammie Pitwood commended.
The Gordon Harris Prize for a Wellington-based graduate went to Karina Rossiter, who graduated in 2000 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting. Beverly Rhodes (Painting) and Maiangi Waitai (Painting) were highly commended.

The Whanganui Sienna Art Prize went to Aaron Gash who graduated last year with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting. Earlier this year Aaron won the People’s Choice Award at the Waikato Society of the Arts 2011 National Youth Art Awards.

Rita Dibert says the exhibition includes work from graduates as far away as Tokyo, Japan, Melbourne, Auckland, Dunedin and Wellington, including students who graduated in the first class in 1997. There are also many pieces from the wide range of local artists who have graduated from the Quay school over the years.

The show opened last week and closes on October 8.

Caption: Fine Arts student Jes-ci Nagra attaches a drip line to Bridget McArthur’s winning work at the Real NZ Art show. Photo: Whanganui Chronicle.