Parkin Drawing Award final call for entries

Entries for The Parkin Prize national drawing award close on June 21, 2014 and artists are being reminded to enter and be in to win a major prize of $20,000. See below.

We Who Live in Darkness

Opening Night Karakia. Ian Hamlin and Shane Te Ruki.

We Who Live in Darkness is an exhibition celebrating, Hone Tuwhare was one of New Zealand’s much loved poets.  He connected with people throughout the country by touring and sharing his talents with others.  He visited primary and secondary schools, universities, factories, art galleries and prisons.  Throughout his life’s work he encouraged others to express themselves. 

Parkin Drawing Award final call for entries

Entries for The Parkin Prize national drawing award close on June 21, 2014 and artists are being reminded to enter and be in to win a major prize of $20,000.

The award, launched by Chris Parkin, arts patron and owner of Museum Art Hotel in Wellington last year, is open to anyone who lives permanently in New Zealand or has New Zealand citizenship. This year, for the first time, five highly commended prizes worth $500.00 each will also be awarded.

An advisory panel, consisting of iconic Kiwi artist, Dick Frizzell, Associate Professor and Head of the School of Fine Arts at Massey University, Heather Galbraith, Senior Lecturer in Painting at the University of Canterbury Roger Boyce and Senior Lecturer at the School of Fine Arts at Massey University Simon Morris will select the finalists for the exhibition at the NZ Academy of Fine Arts (26 July to 25 August 2014).

The winning submission will be selected and announced by Judge, poet, essayist, art-writer, book-illustrator and artist Gregory O’Brien in August - shortly after the opening of the Parkin Drawing Prize exhibition. 

“We have purposely left out of the conditions of entry restrictions on what constitutes drawing leaving artists to define it by their practice. The opportunities for artists in this competition are endless – from the traditional (and not so traditional) figure drawing through to pure abstraction and beyond. We have an outstanding panel of judges this year who are eagerly anticipating the extensive variety of works they will be trawling through in the next few months,” said Chris Parkin, owner of Museum Art Hotel.

“If we are to use last year’s exhibition as a measure, I am looking forward to see the diverse range of entries.  I would encourage artists to enter especially if they are undecided, the selection for these kinds of awards can be quite a subjective process.  I am also particularly interested to see how the exhibition is shaped by the addition of Dick Frizzell and Heather Galbraith as selectors and Gregory O’Brien as this year’s judge,” said Natalie Jones, Curator and Gallery Manager, Academy Galleries.

The competition, in association with the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, will promote 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.

Entries close 5pm 20 June 2013. Forms and full details are available at www.parkinprize.org.nz. 

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