Artists encouraged to enter Australia’s richest landscape art prize

19 April 2006

Artists from right across New South Wales are invited to enter Australia’s richest award for landscape painting, the $50,000 Fleurieu Peninsula Art Prize. The Prize is the centerpiece of the 2006 Fleurieu Peninsula Biennale which will be held in South Australia’s picturesque Fleurieu Peninsula from 3 – 26 November 2006.

Established in 1998, the Fleurieu Peninsula Art Prize celebrates the enduring importance and the contemporary significance of landscape painting in the Australian art world.

With awards totaling $90,000 and main prize on offer of $50,000, the program ranks as one of the most significant visual arts prize programs Australia-wide.

Past Winners of the Fleurieu Art Prize include South Australia’s Robert Hannaford (1998) and New South Wales’ Elisabeth Cummings (2000) Joe Furlonger (2002) and Ian Grant (2004).

In 2006, the judging panel will include National Gallery of Australia Director Ron Radford and curator and art critic Sarah Thomas alongside artist Rick Amor.

Artists are invited to submit entries in the following categories:

· The Fleurieu Peninsula Art Prize - for Australian landscape painting
$50,000 Acquisitive sponsored by Tinlins Wines

· The Art of Food and Wine Prize - for paintings with a food and/or wine industry theme
$10,000 Acquisitive sponsored by HeliAIR

· The Fleurieu Peninsula Vistas Prize - for landscape painting of the Fleurieu Peninsula region
$10,000 Acquisitive sponsored by d'Arenberg

· The Fleurieu Peninsula Water Prize - for paintings with a water theme
$10,000 Acquisitive sponsored by Alongshore Aquatics

· The Fleurieu Peninsula Youth Scholarship - for a young South Australian artist/s aged between 16 and 27 years towards the cost of a program of professional development
Up to $10,000 Sponsored by Santos

Chair of the Fleurieu Peninsula Biennale Board, arts identity Nicky Downer encourages artists across the nation to enter, "While the Fleurieu Art Prize is held in the Fleurieu Peninsula, a region which has long been a source of inspiration for some of Australia's most important landscape artists, the Prize is really a national celebration of landscape painting and Australian art and artists" she said.

Entry forms for the Fleurieu Peninsula Art Prize are available for download at the website or by calling Jo McDonald Co-ordinator, Fleurieu Peninsula Biennale on 08 8323 7984.

Entries close Monday 31 July 2006.

Website: http://www.artprize.com.au