West Australian artist Mikaela Castledine has taken out the $25 000 St John of God Health Care Prize at the 2018 Mandorla Art Awards with her work God is in the House.
The judges commented that the work is a beautifully crafted piece that takes ordinary found objects and through the artistic process turns them into the sacred. The humble materials of glass, beads and thread have been made into something much more significant. The feminine craft of the work speaks to the human desire to create architectural forms. The forms are clearly recognisable as ecclesiastical but from a range of different faiths.
A further three awards were presented at the Official Opening night on Friday 1 June. The inaugural Patricia Toohey Painting Prize was awarded to Julie Davidson for her work And I Saw (after John Martin), sponsored by St Joseph’s Parish Subiaco.
Two highly commended prizes were presented, one to Brian Robinson with his work Moving with the Rhythm of the Stars, (sponsored by Uniting Church in the City) along with Simon and Naomi McGrath with their collaborative piece The First Earth – Sickness and Death (sponsored by the Catholic Archdiocese of Perth).
Angela McCarthy, Chairperson of the Mandorla Committee, commented that the Mandorla Art Award was a truly national with prize winners from Western Australia, Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales. The judges were Anne Ryan (Art Gallery of NSW), Dr Ric Spencer (Fremantle Arts Centre) and Jarrod McKenna (Cornerstone Church and #lovemakesaway).
A range of events are being presented as part of the exhibition program for the month of June including artist talks, student workshops painting and calligraphy demonstrations. The People’s Choice Award will be announced at the opening of the first leg of the touring program at New Norcia Museum and Art Gallery at 2.00pm on Saturday 7 July.
The Finalists Exhibition will be on display at Turner Galleries from 2 to 30 June, Tuesday to Saturday, 11.00am to 5.00pm. A selection of works will then tour to New Norcia Museum and Art Gallery, St John of God Health Care and St Mary’s Cathedral Perth.
For further information or to sign up to the Mandorla Art Award mailing list, visit their website at mandorlaart.com or follow them on Facebook and Instagram @MandorlaArtAward.