Judges announced for 2019 Parkin Drawing Award 

The judging panel consisting of recognised art practitioners, collectors, and academics have been selected for 2019 Parkin Drawing Prize national competition.

The prestigious award attracting a major prize of $20,000 was launched seven years ago by Chris Parkin, arts patron, philanthropist and former owner of Museum Art Hotel in Wellington.

Entries are now open to anyone living permanently in New Zealand. 10 highly commended prizes each worth $500.00 will also be offered, providing an added incentive for artists.

An advisory panel, consisting of artist, writer, curator and Professor Robert Jahnke, highly regarded New Zealand artist Darren George, and Charlotte Davy, Head of Art at Te Papa Tongarewa, will select the finalists for the exhibition at the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts (6 August – 8 September 2019).

The winning submission will be selected and announced by renowned art dealer John Gow from Gow Langsford Gallery at the opening of the Parkin Drawing Prize exhibition on 5 August 2019.

Founder Chris Parkin says the selection of judges continues a track record of high-calibre judges for the competition since its inception in 2012.

“I think it is important in evaluating artistic endeavour to acknowledge the entire field of interest from the largely academic, through the practitioner to the necessary commercial. I’m delighted with this years line-up of judges, particularly because they all bring to the table a wealth of ideas, experience and alternative conservations from different facets of the art world,” said Parkin.

The competition, in association with the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, promotes excellence and innovation in drawing in all its forms (processes, materials and ideas) and aims to play an important role in fostering New Zealand drawing practice.

Previous recipients of the award include Monique Jansen (2013) with AO Folded Moire Drawing ; Douglas Stichbury (2014) with Observer , Gabrielle Amodeo (2015) with The Floor We Walk On , Hannah Beehre (2016) with Catastrophe, Kirsty Lillico’s carpet installation State Block (2017) and Jacqui Colley for Long Echo last year.

 Entries close at 4pm on 5 June, 2019 and the winner will be announced on 5 August 2019 to coincide with a public exhibition showcasing all finalists’ works to be held at the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts in Wellington.

Forms and full details are available at www.parkinprize.nz.

ENDS

For media enquires please contact:

Rebecca Reed at Rebecca@arribapr.co.nz or visit www.parkinprize.nz for more information on the award.

Biographies of the 2019 judging panel

Head Judge:

John Gow

John Gow is the founding Director of Gow Langsford Gallery.  With extensive experience advising private collectors, acting as a consultant to corporate collections, museums and public institutions, Gow is an expert in New Zealand Art. With over thirty years in the industry, John has specialist expertise in historical New Zealand art and indigenous artefacts and a personal interest in collecting 19^th and early 20th-century photography, contemporary New Zealand paintings and sculpture and post-contact Maori objects.

Advisory Panel

Professor Robert Jahnke

Professor Robert Jahnke (Ngai Taharora, Te Whanau a Iritekura, Te Whanau a Rakairo o Ngati Porou) is an artist, writer and curator working principally as a sculptor, although trained as a designer and animator. His work focuses on the dynamics of inter-cultural exchange and the politics of identity. Robert primarily teaches into the MMVA and PhD (FA) programmes at Massey University, primarily out of Palmerston North.

Darren George

Darren George, of Ngāpuhi descent, trained as an artist at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Canterbury and graduated with a BFA in painting in 1993. He subsequently completed a Diploma in Teaching, and then, studied towards an MFA (painting) at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. A multi-award winning artist, Darren has exhibited widely around New Zealand and Australia and is represented by several galleries including Gow Langsford Gallery in Auckland, Brooke/Gifford Gallery in Christchurch,  Peter McLeavey Gallery in Wellington and The Gallery at Woollaston in Nelson.

Charlotte Davy

Charlotte Davy is Head of Art at Te Papa Tongarewa. Her expertise is in creative direction and facilitation, arts strategy, and exhibition programming and development. Through facilitating international exhibitions she has also developed expertise in museum ethics and law, particularly relating to the ownership, loan, and display of art. Charlotte has broader interests in museum architecture and spatial design.