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Our Judges

20th Anniversary Prize

Doctor Lara StrongmanDr Lara Strongman. Photo by Anna Kučera.

Dr Lara Strongman

Director Curatorial and Digital, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia

Dr Lara Strongman is Director Curatorial and Digital at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia. She was formerly Head Curator at Christchurch Art Gallery, and Deputy Director at City Gallery Wellington in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Lara is an award-winning writer and editor, and was a long time film and TV critic for Radio New Zealand. She was a member of Christchurch's Public Art Advisory Group from 2008-2019. She moved to Sydney in 2019.

Joanna CaponJoanna Capon OAM

Joanna Capon OAM

Art Historian, Curator and Industrial Archaeologist

Joanna Capon is an Art Historian, Industrial Archaeologist, curator, writer, cataloguer and lecturer. She is a current Committee Member of the Museum of the Chinese in Australia (MOCA). Her past appointments include Chair of the Australian Centre for Photography; the Operation Art Management Group and the Fundraising Committee of the Big Anxiety Festival; Chair and member of the Children’s Hospital at Westmead’s Health Care Quality Committee; Board member of the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network; The George Institute for Global Health; Museums and Galleries NSW; Editorial Advisory Board of Art and Australia; member of the Visual Arts and Crafts Committee of the NSW Ministry for the Arts; member of SOCOG Public Art Advisory Committee; The Australia China Council. Joanna has been the honorary art-curator at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead for 21 years.

Her books include Guide to Museums in China and has published numerous articles in a variety of publications on European art history, Chinese art, industrial archaeology and art as part of a healing environment. Joanna has lectured in Australia and UK.

Jenny Kee AOJenny Kee AO

Jenny Kee AO

Artist and Fashion Designer

A pioneer of Australian style and internationally acclaimed artist and designer, Jenny Kee's vibrant art and design reflects her passion for the unique and precious Australian environment.

Born in Bondi, Sydney, in 1947 to a Chinese father and an English/Italian mother, Jenny Kee grew up by sparkling blue sea and came of age in the day-glo colours of the 1960s. She worked with style guru and vintage trailblazer Vern Lambert at London's Chelsea Antique Market..."my university of fashion and life". Upon returning to Australia in 1973, she opened her famous frock salon Flamingo Park in Sydney's Strand Arcade and together with designer Linda Jackson, created an Australian identity in fashion. Their 'Flamingo Follies' shows from 1974-1981 became legendary events.

Over 40 years, Jenny's work has appeared on silk, on paper, on wool, on cotton, on ceramics and on canvas. Her creativity has been shaped by an eclectic mix of global influences, from Aboriginal Australian to early European, and the exotic arts of Africa, India, Asia and South America. Jenny's distinctive style has evolved, steeped in a passion for nature, to reflect a "strong, spontaneous, bold and optimistic" Australia.

Her designs are world renowned, exhibited at the Art Gallery of NSW, the Australian National Gallery, London's Victoria & Albert Museum, the Marimura Museum in Tokyo and Sydney's Powerhouse Museum. Jenny's work has been featured in international magazines from Italian Vogue to New York's Women's Wear Daily. Her Opal designs were used by Chanel in Paris and her Koala knits worn by Diana, Princess of Wales. She has received numerous commissions, including works for Parliament House in Canberra, the Australian Bicentenary and her breathtaking parade of costumes for the Opening Ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

In 2001 Jenny shifted her focus inwards, writing her autobiography from her home in the Blue Mountains wilderness. A Big Life was published by Penguin Australia in 2006. In the Queen's Birthday Honours of 2018, Jenny Kee awarded an AO (Officer in the General Division of the Order of Australia) for distinguished service to the Australian fashion industry as a textile artist and clothing designer and through contributions to the environment and conservation.

In 2019-2020 the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney staged Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson: Step into Paradise, the first in-depth survey that captures the dynamic energy of Linda and Jenny's creative partnership. It draws on more than four decades of one of the most influential pairings in the history of Australian fashion, examining the influences, inspirations and the compelling stories behind their work.

For further information, visit Jenny Kee's website.


2019 Prize

Ross HarleyProfessor Ross Harley

Professor Ross Harley

Dean of the Faculty of Art & Design and UNSW Chair of Arts and Culture

Professor Harley is an award-winning artist, writer and educator whose career crosses the bounds of traditional and creative arts research. His video and sound work has been presented at the Pompidou Centre in Paris, New York MoMA, Ars Electronica in Austria, the Biennale of Sydney, and at the Sydney Opera House.

He is a former editor of the journal Art + Text, and has written regular columns on design and popular culture for Rolling Stone and for The Australian national newspaper. He has edited a number of anthologies, including New Media Technologies (1993), Artists in Cyberculture (1993) and Before and After Cinema (1999). Another entitled Parallel Histories in the Intermedia Age appeared in the summer of 2000. In 1992 he was the director of the influential International Symposium on Electronic Art (ISEA) and returned as Co-Chair of ISEA 2013.

He was Head of School Media Arts UNSW (2009-13), Deputy Director at the National Institute for Experimental Arts (NIEA) and Co-Director of the ICinema Centre for Interactive Cinema Research until 2013. A Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales, he was awarded a Vice-Chancellor's Award for Teaching Excellence in 2008, and became Dean of UNSW Art & Design in 2013.

For further information, visit Ross Harley's website.

Louise HerronLouise Herron AM

Louise Herron AM

Chief Executive Officer, Sydney Opera House

Louise Herron became CEO of the Sydney Opera House in 2012, the first woman appointed to the role, after 10 years working in investment banking and serving as chair of Sydney’s Belvoir Street Theatre.

Since 2013, Louise has led development and delivery of the Opera House’s Renewal program to ensure this World Heritage-listed icon and one of the world’s busiest performing arts centres meets the needs and expectations of 21st century artists, audiences and visitors.

Renewal includes more than $270 million in capital works to upgrade performance halls and open new spaces to the public, as well as improving the artistic and visitor experiences for the Opera House’s 10.9 million annual visits and the 1.5 million people who attend a performance each year.

Tim RossTim Ross

Tim Ross

Design and Architecture advocate, Broadcaster, Author and Comedian

Best known for his work on TV and radio (he has the rare distinction of hosting both a number 1 drive show and breakfast show in Sydney), comedian Tim Ross has a long-standing passion for architecture and design.

Over the last six years, he has performed his live Man About the House show exclusively in architecturally-significant buildings and homes that he turns into temporary theatres. He has performed to literally sold-out houses across the country in buildings designed by a Who’s Who of Australian architecture including Harry Seidler, Robin Boyd, Glenn Murcutt, John Wardle, Clare Cousins and Roy Grounds. The show has also toured overseas including seasons in the United States and New Zealand, the Venice Biennale and the London Festival of Architecture where it was included in the ‘must see’ events by The New York Times. In 2014, the show was awarded the National Trust Heritage Award.

Tim has passionately supported the architecture industry, with particular focus on fighting alongside the community on the ‘Save Our Sirius’ campaign. In 2018 Tim was awarded the National Trust Heritage Award for Advocacy, for his activism on modernist architecture and promoting its conservation.

Tim’s interest in architecture has led to speaking engagements at The 50’s and 60’s House Symposium (Museum of Sydney), Home Series talks (Government House), Sydney Design Week, the London Design Museum, Culture of Late’s Symposium in London, the Heritage Address in Melbourne and the renown Griffin Lecture at the National Press Club in Canberra.

He has written on architecture for various publications including Real Living, Habitus, The Saturday Paper, The Smith Journal and The Guardian. In 2017, Tim launched his second book, The Rumpus Room, capturing nostalgic short stories about life in Australia’s suburbs in the 60s, 70s and 80s. The Rumpus Room is now in its third print run.

Tim’s two part series on Australian architecture, Streets of Your Town, premiered on ABC TV in November 2016 to rave reviews, and quickly became the most watched arts program on the ABC for the year.


2018 Prize

Michael LynchMichael Lynch AO CBE

Michael Lynch AO CBE

Australian Arts administrator, former Director of Sydney Opera House and former CEO of West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, Hong Kong

Michael Lynch was Chief Executive of London’s Southbank Centre from 2002 until 2009 and was responsible for the major renovation of Royal Festival Hall and the transformation of the Southbank cultural precinct.

Previously, Michael held positions as Chief Executive of the Sydney Opera House, General Manager of the Australia Council and General Manager of the Sydney Theatre Company.

From 2011 to 2015 he was Chief Executive of the West Kowloon Cultural District, an ambitious project which will see a huge arts precinct built on the shores of Hong Kong‘s Victoria Harbour.

Michael is currently Chairman of Circa, Chairman of the Sydney Community Foundation, and a Board Director of Belvoir Theatre.

Amanda LoveAmanda Love

Amanda Love

Director Loveart, independent Art Advisory

Amanda Love is currently on the board of Artspace, Sydney. She served on the Board of the Biennale of Sydney, Australia's largest contemporary art event, for over 10 years during which time critical acclaim increased and attendances more than tripled.

A former arts lawyer, Love practiced in Sydney with Allens and Arthur Robinson (now Allens) and in Hong Kong with Deacons. She has a Masters in Fine Arts (Hons) and holds the Christies Diploma of Fine Art.

An accredited valuer under the Federal Government's Taxation Incentive Scheme for the Arts for over 20 years, her expertise includes Australian and international modern and contemporary art.

Love has spoken as an expert on contemporary art in Australia and overseas, including at the State Library NSW, National Gallery of Scotland, Arco in Madrid, the MCA Sydney, the AGNSW, and Melbourne's Heide Museum. She has lectured for Christies Australia and regularly advised on Australian Art Collector Magazine's 50 Most Important Artists selection Panel.

A passionate collector, Love has played a founding role in the now flourishing contemporary benefaction groups at the AGNSW (Contemporary Collection Benefactors) and MCA (Directors Working Circle). The Love private collection of international and Australian contemporary art was exhibited publicly at the Casula Powerhouse Museum, Sydney in 2011, and regularly loans works for exhibition to institutions within Australia and internationally.


2017 Prize

Djon Mundine OAMDjon Mundine OAM

Djon Mundine OAM

Curator, Writer, Artist and Activist

Djon Mundine is a member of the Bandjalung people of northern New South Wales and a distinguished pioneer Indigenous curator. A foremost figure in the Australian art world, he is an activist, writer, critic, and commentator. He is well known as the concept curator for the Aboriginal Memorial (1988) installation permanently on display in the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra.

Mundine was awarded an OAM (Order of Australia, Medal for services to the visual arts) in 1993 and was Research Professor at Minpaku Museum of Ethnology in Osaka between 2005-2006. He was Senior Curator for the Gallery of Aboriginal Australia, National Museum of Australia, Canberra until 2000, after his position as Senior Curator of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Programs at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney.

Djon's Bungaree's Farm projection exhibition won the Museum Australia's National Exhibition Award in 2015. At the Cementa Festival he worked with descendants of Jimmy and Peggy Lambert in painting a memorial mural on the external wall of Kandos Museum. Djon installed mixed media as part of the Another Country exhibition at Auburn's Peacock Gallery and I Was Born by a River with photographers Joe Mallard, Peter McKenzie, and painter Michael Philps, at the Rocks Discovery Museum.

His recent exhibition Sixth Sense brought together Archie Moore, Karla Dickens, Fiona Foley, Skye Raabe, Silvana and Gabriella Mangano, Nicole Foreshew, Destiny Deacon and Virginia Fraser, Nasim Nasr, Emily Kngwarreye and Willurai Kirkbright, exploring the human senses and their readings at the National Art School. Djon contributed an essay, In Praise of Shadows and Otherness, for Tracey Moffatt's 2016 Venice Biennale catalogue. Mundine continues to relentlessly curate and write on Aboriginal art and is currently a PhD candidate at University of NSW.

Roslyn Oxley OAMRoslyn Oxley OAM

Roslyn Oxley OAM

Gallerist and arts benefactor

Roslyn Oxley is the Director of Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery. She has been a leading dealer in contemporary art in Sydney since 1982. She has driven the Gallery's commitment to promoting cutting-edge contemporary art, winning critical and commercial recognition for the Gallery's artists both in Australia and overseas. Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery artists have gone on to be some of the very best practitioners in Australian contemporary art, such as Tracey Moffatt, Bill Henson, David Noonan, Patricia Piccinini, Dale Frank, Fiona Hall, Destiny Deacon, James Angus, Newell Harry, and TV Moore.

For over two decades Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery has been maintaining a presence at selective international art fairs such as Art Cologne, Hong Kong Art Fair, Art Basel, The Armory Show and Frieze New York.

As well as being a significant art dealer, Roslyn Oxley has been a board member of a number of high profile arts organisations such as the Melbourne Art Fair and has also been invited to participate on Advisory Committees established by the Australia Council for the Arts and Austrade regarding export strategies for Australian contemporary art.

Alexie Glass-KantorAlexie Glass-Kantor

Alexie Glass-Kantor

Executive Director, Artspace, Sydney and Curator, Encounters, Art Basel | Hong Kong

Alexie Glass-Kantor is Executive Director of Artspace, Sydney, a kunsthalle space committed to supporting the commissioning of contemporary art, exhibitions, publishing initiatives, and research residencies for artists and curators through the provision of a dedicated studio program.

Since 2000 she has curated or co-curated over 100 exhibitions across independent spaces, collecting institutions, biennials and festivals, collaborating with international artists across generations to develop projects throughout the Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America. Prior to her appointment to Artspace she was Director–Senior Curator, Gertrude Contemporary, Melbourne, and Curator, Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne. She is currently Curator of the Encounters installation sector for Art Basel | Hong Kong 2015—2018.


2016 Prize

Wendy Whiteley OAMWendy Whiteley OAM

Wendy Whiteley OAM

Ambassador for the visual arts

Wendy Whiteley OAM is best known as the "goddess muse" and wife of the artist Brett Whiteley, and as the mother of their daughter, the actress Arkie Whiteley (1964-2001). She has become a notable cultural figure, particularly since her ex-husband's death in 1992. She posed for Brett many times and his work was strongly influenced by her opinions. Although they divorced three years before he died, she has control of Brett Whiteley's estate including the copyright to his works, and she honoured his memory in the establishment of the Brett Whiteley Studio in Surry Hills, Sydney, which is now owned and managed as an art museum by the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

Wendy is also known for the restoration and landscaping of derelict railway land in Sydney's Lavender Bay which she turned into a "magic garden", and where Brett and Arkie Whiteley's ashes were scattered.

Rhonda DavisRhonda Davis

Rhonda Davis

Senior Curator at Macquarie University Art Gallery

Rhonda Davis has curated numerous major exhibitions including Central Street Live, Berowra Visions: Margaret Preston & Beyond, Virtual Encounters: Paula Dawson Holograms, A Man for All Seasons: Rollin Schlicht Retrospective and co-curator of Sixties Explosion. More recently, Rhonda was co-curator and project manager for the exhibition Affinities: 7 Museums, 50 Objects, winner of the 2014 Museums and Galleries National Award. She is currently undertaking a PhD in the social history and impact of the Central Street Gallery 1966-1970, including the production of several exhibitions that centre on this period.

Barry KeldoulisBarry Keldoulis

Barry Keldoulis

CEO and Group Fairs Director of Art Fairs Australia

Barry Keldoulis has had more than three decades experience in the world of contemporary art. Barry started his career in New York where he worked as the Private Secretary and Chief of Staff for the Honorable Henry Geldzahler, Commissioner of Cultural Affairs for the City of New York, and the first Curator of 20th Century Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. After 15 years in America and Europe, Barry returned to Australia where he worked at Djamu, a branch of the Australian Museum, dedicated to exhibiting their Indigenous collections alongside contemporary Indigenous art. Barry then entered the commercial world as a Senior Manager, Collections Development for Sherman Galleries.

In 2003, he opened his own gallery to fill a gap in opportunity for young artists to exhibit between artist-run spaces and the major commercial galleries. Artists from his stable are represented in all the state galleries and the National Gallery of Australia, and now exhibit in museums and private galleries around the world. In 2013 Barry was appointed the CEO and Director of Sydney Contemporary, Australasia's international art fair. Barry is also the Chairman of the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA).


2015 Prize

Dr Michael BrandDr Michael Brand

Dr Michael Brand

Director of the Art Gallery of NSW

Dr Michael Brand serves as the ninth Director of the Art Gallery of New South Wales. An international art scholar and cultural leader, Michael's commitment to the arts is evident in his significant contribution to Australian and international art and in his work that spans art museums and academia as well as the government, philanthropic and community sectors.

As the Gallery approaches its 150th anniversary in 2021, Michael's vision for the institution is to enhance its cultural, social and economic vibrancy while advancing its national and international reputation as an innovative art museum that welcomes and engages diverse local and global audiences.

Creating a new narrative for the Gallery is the Sydney Modern Project, a bold vision lead by Michael and the Gallery's team of creative thinkers to deliver inspiring new cultural infrastructure for the pursuit of artistic expression and appreciation in New South Wales, informed by both Sydney's natural beauty and its multicultural community.

Prior to his Art Gallery of New South Wales appointment Michael was consulting director of the new Aga Khan Museum in Toronto while it was under construction. Before this he worked as director of the world-renowned J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles from 2005–2010.

Penelope Seidler AMPenelope Seidler AM

Penelope Seidler AM

Arts Patron and Director of Harry Seidler & Associates

Penelope Seidler combines the aesthetic and practical skills of an architect with financial skills of an accountant. Her particular interests are international and Australian contemporary and ethnographic art, which she collects.

She is directly responsible for commissioning artists for projects of Harry Seidler & Associates and has an intense concern for both the built and natural environments. She has travelled widely as a Director of Harry Seidler & Associates and has a broad working knowledge of international arts organisations through her long association with the Museum of Modern Art, New York and more recently in Europe through the MAK in Vienna.

Barbara FlynnBarbara Flynn

Barbara Flynn

International Curatorial Advisor

Since arriving in Australia in 1996, Barbara has drawn on an extensive network of contacts to assist Australia-based artists to enlarge the audience for their art.

Since 2008 Barbara has worked with artists, architects and the Australian property development sector to realise works of public art for new office tower developments in the Sydney central city at 1 Bligh Street, 8 Chifley Square, and 161 Castlereagh Street. She is art advisor to Frasers Property Australia and Sekisui House for Central Park and to AMP Capital for Quay Quarter Sydney.

Barbara acts as Curatorial Advisor to the Barangaroo Delivery Authority and Lend Lease for Barangaroo. As Curatorial Advisor to the City of Sydney for the City Centre (2013-16), she has analysed the role art can play and identified artists to be part of the transformation of Sydney as George Street is progressively pedestrianised and light rail is implemented.


2014 Prize

Lisa HavilahLisa Havilah. Photo by Luke Fuda.

Lisa Havilah

Director of Carriageworks

Lisa Havilah is the Director of Carriageworks, Sydney. Carriageworks produces and presents a contemporary multi-arts program that engages artists and audiences with contemporary ideas and issues. The Centre’s program is artist led and emerges from its commitment to reflect social and cultural diversity.

From 2005 - 2011 Lisa was the Director of Campbelltown Arts Centre. Under her directorship Campbelltown Arts Centre pioneered a multidisciplinary contemporary arts program, bringing together artists and communities across disciplines to examine ideas through the processes of producing contemporary art. Lisa was previously Assistant Director of Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre (1998–2004).

Lisa specialises in the intersection between contemporary art and community engagement. She has developed and managed a range of national and international exchange, exhibition and residency programs. Curatorial projects include Anita & Beyond (2003), For Matthew & Others: Journeys with Schizophrenia (2006), What I think About When I think about Dancing (2009) and Edge of Elsewhere (2010-12), a three-year project produced for Sydney Festival that commissions artists from Australia, Asia and the Pacific to develop new work in partnership with suburban communities.

She has lectured in Management and Organisation (Master of Fine Arts) at the College of Fine Arts, University of NSW. Previously she has been the Chair of Arts NSW’s Western Sydney Program which was responsible for the implementation of the State Government strategy to deliver arts and cultural infrastructure across Western Sydney. In 2010 Lisa was named as one the top 100 influential people in Sydney for her work at Campbelltown Arts Centre.

Justin MillerJustin Miller

Justin Miller

International Art Advisor and former Chairman of Sotheby's Australia

Justin Miller is one of the world’s most trusted art advisors. With over twenty five years experience in the fine art industry, Justin has been instrumental in the sale of many of the twenty-first century’s most iconic artworks.

Justin Miller was the Chairman of Sotheby’s Australia from 1999 to 2010. His company, Justin Miller Art, advises clients in Australia and worldwide on the purchase and sale of the finest paintings, sculpture and works of art. He has previously judged the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition.

Justin is currently an active patron of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Deputy Chairman and Foundation Trustee of the Sydney Theatre Company, a member of the board of Governors of the Taronga Zoo and an Ambassador of the Australian Museum of Contemporary Art. Justin holds an Honours degree in Fine Arts and Anthropology from the University of Sydney Australia.

Gretel PackerGretel Packer

Gretel Packer

Arts Patron and Trustee of the Art Gallery of NSW

Gretel Packer has been involved in philanthropic endeavours since 2000 when she was appointed as one of the Founding Governors of the Taronga Zoo Foundation, a position that she still holds. Her other current positions include Chairperson of the Advisory Board to the Crown Resorts Foundation; Trustee of the Sydney Theatre Company Foundation; Founding Patron of the Taronga Zoo Conservation Science Initiative; and most recently her appointment to the Art Gallery of NSW Board of Trustees. Gretel has held previous positions as a Director of the Royal Hospital for Women Foundation, and been a Council Member of the Royal Botanical Gardens Foundation. Gretel has a long term commitment to supporting a broad range of community activities and charities aligned to the arts, education, and environmental science.


2013 Prize

Nick MitzevichNick Mitzevich

Nick Mitzevich

Director of the Art Gallery of SA

Nick Mitzevich holds a degree in Fine Art and Graduate Diplomas in Education and Fine Art from the University of Newcastle, New South Wales. Nick commenced in his position of Director, Art Gallery of South Australia, in 2010. He intends to build on the outstanding legacy of the Gallery's past directors by bringing the energy, ideas and inspiration necessary to lead the Art Gallery of South Australia into its next exciting phase.

Previously, Nick was Director of The University of Queensland Art Museum, Brisbane, a position he held from 2007 to 2010. His strategic direction resulted in major innovative change for the art museum enhancing the museum's national profile, providing significant increases in visitor numbers, growth of the art collection particularly in the area of Aboriginal art and the development of philanthropic support. He was recognised for his outstanding achievements by receiving the Museum and Gallery Services Queensland 2009 Outstanding Achievement Award.

Nick was also Director of the Newcastle Region Art Gallery, a position he held for six years. In this role his initiatives included a transformation of the gallery in the areas of community engagement, support groups, programming, sponsorship and collection development, particularly in the area of contemporary Australian art. Other achievements included a broad refurbishment of the gallery and master planning for a major redevelopment plan for the Newcastle Region Art Gallery.

With over 15 years of experience managing and directing public galleries, Nick has gained extensive knowledge and understanding of contemporary art gallery practices and its current trends. He has curated notable international and national exhibitions including AES+F The Revolution starts now! (2010), Margaret Olley: Life's journey (2009), Strange Cargo: contemporary art as a state of encounter (2006) and Auto Fetish: the mechanics of desire (2004).

Professor Ian HowardProfessor Ian Howard

Professor Ian Howard

College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales

Professor Ian Howard was the Dean of the College of Fine Arts (COFA) for 15 years at the University of New South Wales. His training nationally and internationally in art, art education and film and television production, has provided strong foundations for a career that encompasses artistic, academic and administrative leadership roles in the area of experimental media production.

The subject matter of his research is concerned with the relationship between military and civilian populations. This aesthetic shifts between the unlikely quadrants of conceptual art, archaeology, popular culture and agit-prop, resulting in an output that includes gallery exhibited images, objects and videos, major international site projects/performances and broadcast media productions.

The ambition of Ian's research is to provide a framework which enables the open and expressive interpretation of pertinent subject matter resulting in a convincing narrative about issues of social significance. Digital cinema and the reformulation of narrative through the integration of interactivity is the vehicle through which this ambition is achieved.

Biography from UNSW Research and photo from COFA


2012 Prize

Guido Belgiorno-Nettis AMGuido Belgiorno-Nettis AM

Guido Belgiorno-Nettis AM

Trustee of the Art Gallery of NSW and Director of the Transfield Foundation

Guido Belgiorno-Nettis was made a member of the Order of Australia in the General Division on Australia Day 2007, for service to the construction industry and to the arts in executive and philanthropic roles.

Guido is also a Trustee of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Chairman of the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Director of the Transfield Foundation. Since establishing the Sydney Biennale in 1973, the Foundation also supports arts projects and organisations that nurture community initiatives, such as AIME – Australian indigenous mentoring experience.

Natalie WilsonNatalie Wilson

Natalie Wilson

Assistant Curator of Australian Art at the Art Gallery of NSW

After completing a Bachelor of Visual Arts and a Masters in Art History and Theory, Natalie Wilson continued as researcher for many essay publications and catalogues for the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

She was awarded the Art Gallery Society of NSW Staff Development Scholarship in 2011 and travelled to New Guinea where she attended the annual Goroka Cultural Festival. She also was awarded the Staff Studio Residency at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris which she intends to take up in January 2013. Natalie brings to the judging panel a wide knowledge of Australian art.

Professor Janice Reid AMProfessor Janice Reid AM

Professor Janice Reid AM

Vice-Chancellor of the University of Western Sydney and Trustee of the Art Gallery of NSW

Janice Reid is a recipient of the Wellcome Medal and Centenary Medal and a fellow of the Australian Academy of Social Sciences. As well as being a Trustee of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, she is a member of the National Cultural Heritage Committee and a regular judge of the UWS Sculpture Prize.

Janice's long association with education and welfare related institutions, as well as her interest in the arts, brings an abundant appreciation of all areas of artistic expression.


2011 Prize

Dr Gene Sherman AMDr Gene Sherman AM. 2005 photo by Mark Morffew.

Dr Gene Sherman AM

Executive Director of Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation

Dr Sherman is Chairman and Executive Director of Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation (SCAF), a Sherman family philanthropic enterprise dedicated to the public exhibition of significant contemporary art from Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. She assumed this role following 21 years as Director and Proprietor of Sherman Galleries (1986-2007).

She is also a major philanthropist who supports aspiring and professional artists through a range of scholarships, donations and initiatives.

Professor Ted Snell AMProfessor Ted Snell AM. Photo by Sonia Payes.

Professor Ted Snell AM

Chair of the Visual Arts Board, Australia Council

Professor Snell was appointed Chair of the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council for the Arts. He has curated many exhibitions and has published several books and catalogues.

A practising visual artist since 1968, Ted's work has been shown in solo exhibitions in Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane, and in group exhibitions throughout Australia. He is an art reviewer for The Australian.


2010 Prize

John Kaldor AMJohn Kaldor AM. Photo by Patrick Boland.

John Kaldor AM

Principal of Kaldor Public Art Projects

John Kaldor is known as a committed supporter and patron of international contemporary art in Australia. He is a member of the International Council of the Museum of Modern Art, New York and formerly the International Council of the Tate Modern in London. John is also a former trustee of the Art Gallery of New South Wales and PS-1 Contemporary Art Centre, New York.

Glenn BarkleyGlenn Barkley

Glenn Barkley

Curator at Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney

Glenn Barkley is Curator at Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), Sydney and was previously curator of the University of Wollongong Art collection from 1996 - 2007. Major curatorial projects have included Almanac: The Gift of Ann Lewis AO (2009), Making it New: Focus on Contemporary Australian Art, MCA (2009), avoiding myth & message: Australian artist and the literary world, MCA (2009), Home Sweet Home - Works from the Peter Fay Collection, NGA (co-curated with Dr Deborah Hart) (2003/2004), Multiplicity: Prints and Multiples from the Collection of the MCA and the University of Wollongong, MCA (2006 and touring), Without Borders: Outsider Art in an Antipodean Context (co-curated with Peter Fay), Monash University Museum of Art and Campbelltown Art Centre, Sydney (2008).

Monica McMahonMonica McMahon

Monica McMahon

Curator at University of Western Sydney

Monica McMahon has been the UWS Art Curator at the University of Western Sydney since 2002 and during this period she has established three galleries on its campuses. She is the artistic director for all exhibition programs in the following UWS galleries: Female Orphan School Gallery (Parramatta Campus), Margot Hardy Gallery (Bankstown Campus) and the UWS Art Gallery (Werrington North, Penrith Campus) which are recognized public galleries.

Monica is the artistic director of the UWS Acquisitive Sculpture Award and Exhibition (biannual outdoor exhibition held at the Campbelltown campus), which was established in 2004. She is also the curator of the University's permanent art collection, responsible for the promotion, development, research and management of the collection which is distributed throughout the University's six campuses across western Sydney.

Monica has a Bachelor of Arts degree with majors in Art History, Literature and Communications, as well as a postgraduate diploma in Information Science and a Master of Arts in Cultural Heritage.


2009 Prize

Geoffrey Cassidy

Director of Artbank

Neil Balnaves

Founder of The Balnaves Foundation

Diane Balnaves

Trustee of The Balnaves Foundation


2008 Prize

Edmund Capon AM OBE

Director of Art Gallery of NSW

Deborah Edwards

Senior Curator of Australian Art at Art Gallery of NSW


2007 Prize

Laura Back

Curator of Art at Australian War Memorial and Curator (temporary) at Old Parliament House

John McPhee

Art Consultant


2006 Prize

Anthony Bond

Director Curatorial and Head Curator International at Art Gallery of NSW

Felicity Fenner

Curator at Ivan Doherty Gallery, NSW College of Fine Arts

Professor Anne Graham

Chair of Fine Art at School of Fine Art, Drama and Music, University of Newcastle


2005 Prize

John Stringer

Curator of the Kerry Stokes Collection, Perth

William Wright AM

Sherman Foundation Fellow in Contemporary Art, Sydney University


2004 Prize

Wayne Tunnicliffe

Curator of Contemporary Australian Art at Art Gallery of NSW

Ken Unsworth

Sculptor


2003 Prize

Rachel Kent

Curator of Contemporary Art at Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney

Roslyn Oxley

Gallerist, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Paddington


2002 Prize

Keith Cottier

Architect

May Barry

Sculptor


2001 Prize

Deborah Edwards

Curator of Australian Art at Art Gallery of NSW

Benjamin Genocchio

Art Critic, The Australian