Togart Contemporary Art Awards 2013

25 September 2013

Yesterday I went to theTogart Contemporary Art Awards 2013, a regional prize for an area which has the highest per capita  number of artists in Australia. The artists must have some connection to the Northern Territory either as a resident or ex resident. The exhibition is a celebration of the diversity of the Northern Territory.

 Penny Rose Wiggins

 ’Landings’ Oil on a found object.

A New Zealander whose great grandfather was presented with a sacred paddle when he returned home wounded from Gallipoli. The paddle represents her own journey to northern Australia and reminds her of her past.

 Trevor Jenkins

‘Art Isn’t Art Isn’t’ Multi-media, video, found objects, sizes various.

‘Trevor is a homeless Christian activist who at times creates disturbances around Darwin by being poor and making no excuses.’

p44 Togart Contemporary Art Awards Catalogue 2013.

Trevor collects rubbish, man after my own heart and turns it into temporary works of public art. Classified as a Darwin character he is known as the Rubbish Warrior.

Mike Gillam
‘Before the Firestorm’ Digital image

An Alice Springs resident he captures the departure of a flock of budgerigars from a dead tree fleeing the oncoming fire which will burn fiercely because of the introduction of buffel grass, originally a native of Asia and Africa, now changing the landscape of the north.

Nancy McDinny

‘Story of Mayawagu’ Acrylic on linen.Nancy was born in the Gulf of Carpentaria and painted the story of her great grandfather, Mayawagu, who actively resisted the invasion of pastoralists. The painting shows an incident when he escaped wounded from police and trackers who wanted to arrest him. Paul Foelsche, an inspector of police, 1870-1904, who masterminded the massacres of hundreds of Aboriginal men, women and children is honoured by having a river named after him. Nancy McDinny would like to see that river re-named Mayawagu River.

Sonia Kurarra

‘Martuwarra’ Acrylic on linen

Sonia paints the sandy billabong country which runs behind Nookanbah where she now lives and used to help at the kindergarten teaching children art. This painting shows swimming and fishing in the Fitzroy River.  She has depicted parlka (barramundi), nganku, (shark), wirritunany (swordfish) sting-ray, wakiri (pandanus) and kalputu (water snakes).