Author Archives: Lou-Anne

Salon des Refusés 2022 – Finalists

Congratulations to all the artists selected in the 2022 Salon des Refusés, run in conjunction with the Brisbane Portrait Prize.

Exhibition on show at Petrie Terrace Gallery from Thursday 6th October – Sunday 6th November 2022

Opening Night is sold out, but get your tickets to our wine and cheese afternoons here. To find out more about our selectors click here.

Anna (Lady ‘C’) Leigh Schoenheimer
Tired Chris England
Queen of Drama Lindy Mackintosh
Merging Worlds of Clairy Laurence Bronwyn Doherty
Tarcisio Carol Oh
Just a Moment Timothy Grey
Muse in green Marijke Lambregtse
Poet and Dog (Anthony and Benny) Julie Manning
Stable Table Robyn Moon
Monique Kirsty Dixon
Art + Music = an interesting life Linda McInally
2021 Isolation and exhaustion Margaret Bending
A Journalistic Researcher Christine Hall
5:19am Kirilee West
Liz Preston: “Grandmother” to many Graham Preston
Lounge Art Jo McFadyen
Selfie 2022 Justin Buchner
Damien Power Alison Mooney
All That Glitters Elizabeth Barden
Nature Nutures Nurse Lynne Day
Outcomes of Introspection De Gillett Cox
To Joh Sangeeta Mahajan
Purple Purple Chang
“I can’t wear yellow…” Carol Goodwin
Born in the Year of Tiger Nam-Trung Nguyen
Lost but now I’m Found Laine Walker
Dylan Stephen Tiernan
Seize the Clay Tania Carmichael
Johnny in the Studio Min Jia Johnny Huang
The Conduit Kris Anderson
Portrait of Dr Andrew Amey Brett Poulsen
Lingering Hannah Brouard
The Show Must Go On David Wells
Patience Cameron Seymour
Andrew + HB4 Andrew Weil
Camila Monique Baques
The Profound Void of an Empty Stomach Charlotte England
Steph Nadya Constantinidis
Lighting up Change Carla Benzie
Dr Young Zhi Peng Wu
Nina Ginsberg and Leki The Flower Bike Dr. Ekaterina Strounina
Buckley Mr. Casey Charles
Floating Mind Reece Woodland
Next Gen Claudia paints Keith, Emerging to Established Donna Gibb
The Enabler Samantha Groenestyn
This is Me. Self Portrait. Monica Batiste
Decisions, Decisions…What Shoes Will I Wear Jamie Congdon
Jamie Simon Brown
The Colour Behind the Uniform Melanie Kilby
Portrait of a Queer Father as Icon Jeremy Plint
Marcel Daniel Butterworth
Calming the Mind Wendy Fry
The Bubblegum Blazer Amy Knie
Buckley Natalia Bertelli
Self-portrait in the Morning Leo (Zheng) Liu
Unfinished Business Annette Raff
Lineage Nicola Hooper
In Her Eyes Amy Bridge

Salon des Refusés 2022 – Selectors

We are delighted to introduce to you our selectors, who have the unenviable job of choosing the finalists for the Salon des Refusés.

With so much talent on offer it isn’t easy and we appreciate their professionalism and expertise when faced with the daunting task of selecting approximately 60 works out of over 300.

Lizzie Riek

Lizzie Riek is the Collections and Curatorial Officer at Redland Art Gallery and has experience working in public and university galleries. Beginning her arts career with a Bachelor of Fine Art (Printmaking) at Queensland College of Art, Griffith University, Lizzie has gone on to recently complete a Master of Museum Studies at University of Queensland (UQ), and is currently undertaking a PhD (UQ) on contemporary archival art practices.

Dr Kay Kane

RQAS Fellow and former President, Kay completed a fine art degree at Central School of Art, London, in 1981, and has thereafter exhibited in international and local galleries, including solo exhibitions. She has long been active in the art world, conducting many workshops and has extensive experience judging art awards, including one in New York in 2017. Kay is an experienced portrait painter and her work is represented in art collections in Australia and internationally, and has been hung in many major Australian exhibitions. She has been twice winner of the Harold and Agnes Richardson Art award and received several first prizes including the prestigious Queensland Figurative in 2016, and was a Salon Des Refusés winner in 2021.

Laura Brinin

Laura Brinin is a Brisbane-based curator of contemporary art. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Visual Arts) in 2012 and continued her visual art practice overseas in 2013 in Canada with a Visual Art residency. Upon returning home, Laura has since pursued professional curatorial practice at QUT and Side Gallery in Red Hill. Laura has exhibited her own work both in Australia and overseas and as an independent freelance curator across Brisbane. This primarily focussed on engagement and activation of public spaces, as well as consulting for private interior collections. You can find her most days reading, playing with her sausage dogs, and visiting art galleries.

Congratulations to all the artists selected in the 2022 Salon des Refusés, run in conjunction with the Brisbane Portrait Prize.

Click here to view the list of finalists

Exhibition on show at Petrie Terrace Gallery from Thursday 6th October – Sunday 6th November 2022

Elisabeth Ruiz

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About Artist

Elisabeth spent her early years in Barcelona where she dabbled in drawing and painting  from an early age. As an adult Elisabeth continued developing  her art with watercolours at the Queensland Watercolour Society. She soon found that this didn’t define her as an artist and furthered her formal training at Brisbane Institute  Art and Bremer TAFE focusing in painting in oils and acrylics.

Her first solo exhibition was at St Stephens Gallery, Brisbane City Hall in 2000.

Elisabeth likes to use her work in aid of community support exhibiting for Life Line, Mitchelton Community Centre, Qld Police Services, St Steven’s Catholic Gift Shop, View Club and Brisbane Ethnic and Multicultural Arts Centre [BEMAC].

Her style, expressionist abstraction, is meditative and at the same time energetic. It derives from observed reality and never looses all contact with it. Themes and locations are entwined so that everyday life is, not only urban, but also a mystical experience.

James Brown

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“Art has been art of my life for as long as I can remember, and I have been oil painting for at least 60 years, on and off, with breaks of 10 years or more.

Now I am retired it is my passion.

I love painting Light and Portraiture, so many of my current paintings are Faces sculpted by Light. All my paintings are experiments, attempts to resolve problems, and when the experiment has concluded I move on to another challenge.

I paint Fast because that’s a side effect of my technique. Fast is good because I can experiment more!

I paint what I want to paint and refuse most commissions; if Art becomes Work – I am not interested.

Ultimately, I paint because I Must and sometimes it’s good and sometimes bad, but always a great pleasure, and right now that is what drives me :)”

Winners – Queensland Figurative 2022

The Royal Queensland Art Society would like to congratulate all the winners in the 2022 Queensland Figurative Exhibition, part of the RQAS Biennial.

Thanks also to our Judge Ben Smith.

Please scroll down to view the winning artworks and judges comments.

First Prize

Dad at Home

by Greg Jessup

JUDGES COMMENTS

Conveys the high regard the artist has for his father and how their psyche both pervades the space and stands in wonder of it. An incredible, mad work with overwhelming sense of life. Deft lively brush marks on the figure. Playful colours in the skin tones. This is not just photorealism. Beautifully composed. I feel like various elements of the surrounding foliage have been manipulated to keep your eye within the picture frame. The background elements push the figure forward. An image that shocked me with its intensity the moment I saw it.

Second Prize

Patron Saint of Adventure

by Samantha Groenestyn

JUDGES COMMENTS

This is a highly original composition. You can see that every shape and form, each placement of an object in this picture has gone through the filter of a human mind. Very idiosyncratic. Who would have thought a bike on a shoulder would work so well. Love the light from behind. A lovely feeling of warmth and regard for the sitter.

Highly Commended

Oneness

by Anne-Marie Zanetti

JUDGES COMMENTS

I have a lot of respect for people who go beyond trying to paint what is before them. It is far more difficult than people imagine. The technical problems to be overcome are often huge and if done well the effort isn’t always apparent to the viewer. A beautiful thoughtful idea.

Peoples Choice

First Coffee

by Isabella Allis

Winners – Young Artist Award 2022

The Royal Queensland Art Society would like to congratulate all the winners in the 2022 Young Artist Award, part of the RQAS Biennial.

Thanks also to our Judge Ben Smith.

Please scroll down to view the winning artworks and judges comments.

Section 1: 18-30yrs

First Prize

Cactus Hour

by Olivia Dean-Jones

JUDGES COMMENTS

A beautiful portrait with an energetic bold feeling.

Second Prize

Is There Still Life Here

by Isabella Paxton

JUDGES COMMENTS

Looks to be lovingly render from life! A skill to be encouraged. And witty title.

Section 2: 17yrs and under

First Prize

Disparity

by Ava Merolla

JUDGES COMMENTS

Beautifully drawn with mood and character. Well constructed and subtlety distorted for feeling. Interesting use of the digital media.

Highly Commended

Life

by Dorothy Huang

JUDGES COMMENTS

One of the most imaginative works in the room. A great talent for the future.

Peoples Choice

To be announced at the conclusion of the exhibition

Winners – 132nd Members Annual 2022

The Royal Queensland Art Society would like to congratulate the winners of the 132nd Members Annual,

judged by María Saurí, Julie Fay Brims and Julie Manning .

Exhibition continues in Petrie Terrace Gallery until Sunday 3rd July.

Overall Winner – Best Artwork

Vista #11

by Laura Phillips

Oil on Board

Judges Comments:

This painting has an intentional two-dimensional feel in its composition and presentation which is quite beautiful in its effect. The palette used is subtle and evocative. Although the work is a rendition of a traditional subject, i.e., a still life, there is no hint here of antiquity. The artist in this case has made it their own, creating a work which seems timeless.

SECTION 1: Painting – Oils & Acrylics

First Prize

Tim Page. War Photographer

by Joanne Brooker

Acrylic on Panel

Judges Comments:

This work is bold and alive, painted in eye-catching colour. It is well-rounded as a painting: the elements of a war photographers’ life surrounding the subject give his character authenticity. The figure of Tim Page is commanding from the centre of the composition and painted with genuine expression. It is technically accomplished.

Second Prize

Encounter at Coochie

by Peter Hubbard

Oil on Board

Judges Comments:

This painting emanates light and warmth. It is very successful in telling its story around an encounter at Coochie. The composition is appealing and very natural. The artist has been skilled in depicting the figures and their interaction within the landscape. Overall, this is an enticing and atmospheric work.

Highly Commended

My Country 465

by Max Butler

Oil

Judges Comments:

This work shows very skilled use of a bold colour palette, set out in a clever composition. The bands of foreground, middle and background reveal their details slowly on continued examination of the painting – it invites looking and re-looking to discover the elements in each part of its striking landscape.

SECTION 2: Painting – Watercolour

First Prize

Carnarvons Forever

by Tony Walker

Watercolour

Judges Comments:

This work shows excellent use of a limited palette and expressive line work. The use of watercolour as a medium has been harnessed to its full extent in skilfully depicting the landscape. Overall, this is an evocative work which is infused with light.

Second Prize

Duck and Lilly under the Milky Way

by Wilna TenCate

Watercolour

Judges Comments:

This painting shows good balance between the watercolour use on the figure and the duck and an illustrative approach to the background. The figure, face and animal are sensitively and expressively depicted, with good technical skill. The overall composition is very well balanced.

SECTION 3: Photography, Digital Painting & Digital Manipulation

First Prize

Bend It

by Di Cox

Digital

Judges Comments:

There is a very effective two-dimensional presence to this work. The composition is balanced, and the inclusion of chairs on the open space in the foreground gives the work a light-hearted summery feel.

Second Prize

Colour in the Fog

by Richard McLaren

Photography

Judges Comments:

The photographer here has captured a mystical and ethereal quality to the subject matter of a landscape in fog, which translates well as a larger presentation.

SECTION 4: Sculpture – 3D works all media

First Prize

Maggie

by Kathy Sullivan

Wirework

Judges Comments:

This wirework sculpture is delicately constructed. When it is hung and diffused with light, it creates an evocative shadow of a magpie, bringing the bird to life in the room. This is skillfully devised and when hung, a fluidly mobile sculpture.

SECTION 5: Drawing – All Media

First Prize

Ngoanga – Place of Figs Petrie

by Robyn Bauer

Charcoal

Judges Comments:

This charcoal drawing achieves excellent tonal difference and has an overall compositional balance. The fig trees are gracefully drawn, with depth and strength.

SECTION 6: 2D Artworks – Any Other Media

First Prize

“Flavigny 3, Ed1/6”

by Katia Strounina

Wood Engraving

Judges Comments:

This wood engraving achieves a wonderful chiaroscuro in its depiction of the town gates of Flavigny. The work exhibits excellent technical artistry, and the lines which create the texture of buildings, foreground and sky are beautifully rendered. There is much movement and light in the sky to balance the darker foreground and buildings. The scene appears ancient but timeless, with great depth.

Second Prize

Blue and Yellow

by Alan Fletcher

Watercolour, Acrylic and Pen

Judges Comments:

This work exhibits excellent skill in composition, and very effective use of the different media used. The delicate nest of lines in the middle are texturally and sensitively rendered, and the blue bar at the top provides requisite balance. Each of the three elements contrasts with the others in shape, media and texture, but successfully integrates into a very balanced and intriguing whole.

Highly Commended

Going About Living

by Wayne Singleton

Hand Coloured Linocut Print

Judges Comments:

This linocut print displays immense skill in the detail of the scene and in the delicate hand colouring of the birds. The eye of the viewer is drawn again and again to explore the intricacies of the scene. The work encourages full immersion into the forest that is depicted and the living elements within it.

People’s Choice

Gap Creek

by Qi Liu

Oil

Marie Adams

Banksia Man.1
Jessica greening buildings
Riparian Zone

My focus is on portraiture, life drawing and the Australian landscape. I am fascinated by the dilemma of portraying people; of how to capture an aspect of each person’s unique image and tell something of their story in a way that they are comfortable with, but retains integrity.

I enjoy the challenge of life drawing; of trying to portray the person in front of me in a limited amount of time and the moment when you feel that your eye and hand are working in unison.

Currently I am trying to combine figurative work with landscape, and in particular, the Australian bush. I am always inspired by places that I visit and the people I meet and I try and recreate these experiences in my work. I am interested in exploring environmental and social justice issues in my art practice.

I am drawn by the visual, tactile, compulsive nature of making art. I work with charcoal, ink, watercolour, pastels, acrylic and gouache on paper and oil paint on canvas. I like working with clay and I would like to experiment more with sculpture and mixed media.

Winners – Different Dimensions 2022

The Royal Queensland Art Society would like to congratulate all the winners in the Different Dimensions 2022 Exhibition.

Thanks also to our Judge Catherine Reason Macauley, and Fellows Selector Frances McKennariey. Please scroll down to view the winning artworks and judges comments.

First Prize

 

Patchwork Totem

by Jennifer Long

JUDGES COMMENTS

Lovely subtle shapes and softness.

Second Prize

Hunting Dog

by Dr Ekaterina Strounina

JUDGES COMMENTS

There is a strength in the pose that is quite compelling I keep walking back to this piece to tell me more.. the intensity is there but it doesn’t quite tell a story.

 

Third Prize

In Praise of Women

by Glenise Clelland

JUDGES COMMENTS

A modest Appraisal of the female figure, charcoal outline with the subtle blushes of colour. the cylindrical shape doesn’t give a focal point.

Fellows Selection

Open to eligible RQAS Members. Selected by Frances McKennariey FRQAS

4 Lace Monitors

by Claudje Lecompte

SELECTORS COMMENTS

“I truly enjoyed discovering this elegantly realised creation inspired by the natural form and movement. The artist’s resolution of opposing elements into solid form are deeply satisfying.

Peoples Choice

Announced at the end of the exhibition.