Lifelike painting wins people’s choice award at 2024 Youth Art Prize
Eighteen young artists have been recognised on the final day of an important exhibition at Murray Bridge Regional Gallery.
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Young creatives Jade Pomery and Krystyna Roylance have been named among the winners at Murray Bridge’s 2024 Youth Art Prize.
Roylance, from Mannum Community College, won the $1000 overall prize at Murray Bridge Regional Gallery on Sunday for The totem cats, a clay and mixed media sculpture depicting three cats stacked on top of each other.
Judge Henry Jock Walker praised her technical ability, the characters she had crafted and her idea of making something which resembled a scratching post out of cats: “a simple idea but really strong”.
Pomery, from Mount Barker High School, had the exhibition’s most popular work: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, an incredibly lifelike oil painting.
It took out the top people’s choice award after the casting of 774 votes – a record for the exhibition.
Second in the popular vote was Unity College student Madison Johncock’s painting Beyond hope, and third was Yindi Fiebig’s drawing Garden dragon feeding time.
Other winners included:
- 21-25: First Winter Crane, Compostable and disposable; second Ariela Rose, Night of Pan; third Cian Yakas, Auf der zeil
- 18-20: First Valentina Plisko, Encounter Lutheran College, Glow; second Luke Henry, Looking forward; third Hayley Hunt, Murray Bridge Independent Learning Centre, Beyond the blue
- 15-17: First Alearah Harradine, Murray Bridge High School, Blue-tongue lizard (Walmajarri); second Jorge Barnes, Ben Stiller; third Cassie Holt, Birdwood High School, An oil company’s destruction
- 12-14: First Mia Reichstein, Mannum Community College, Magpie sculpture; second Claire Carter, Snag!; third Cooper Densley, Aero
- Best compassionate depiction of an animal: Jade Pomery, Mount Barker High School, Cat; honourable mention Mikaela Watts, My rabbit Silva
Posing with their works are Madison Johncock, Winter Crane, Hayley Hunt, Cooper Densley, Cassie Holt and Luke Henry. Photos: Peri Strathearn.
There were a record number of entries in the exhibition this year: 221.
Director Fulvia Mantelli described it as one of the most important annual fixtures on the gallery’s calendar, filled with insightful, honest and generous work.
“Young people have really, really important things to say about how they view the world and how to be in it,” she said.
“I feel like we need to listen a bit more closely and a bit more deeply.”
The annual exhibition was organised in partnership with the Rotary Clubs of Mobilong and Murray Bridge and a range of sponsors.
It closed after Sunday’s awards ceremony, having been open since September 14.
Three new exhibitions will open at Murray Bridge Regional Gallery on November 16.
