CONGRATULATIONS TO
Christine Lott: selected for the 2009 Byron Bay Art Diary.
Opening: 4th October by Mayor Jan Barham
Where: Epicentre Art Gallery, Red Devil Park, Byron Bay. Contact: 0407152208
Finalists in the Lexus Mortimore Prize:
Rosa Fidele: a drawing – “Children at Play”.
Vivian Falk: 2 x paintings selected.
Finalists in the Ryde Art Awards:
Pamela Irving: 1st Place: works on paper; Highly Commended: painting.
Sue Cesarini: Commended: painting.
ARTISTS’ NEWS
Julie Ballis: Solo Show – A Parade of Portraits and Places.
When: Tuesday 10 February 2009 to Sunday 1 March 2009
Where: ‘The Q’, the Exhibition Space at the new Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre. The entrance to the Centre is off Rutledge Street.
Opening: 6pm Thursday 12th February 2009 by Councilor Ann Rocca – PAA members most welcome.
Nafisa Naomi: solo exhibition titled “Regeneration”Â
When: 21 Oct – Nov 7.
Where: Artarmon Galleries, Sydney.
Opened: 21st October by Jacinta Tynan (journalist, newsreader, author)
Nafisa’s prize winning Portrait of Lewis Morley (2008 Black Swan Prize for Portraiture) was at the Artarmon Galleries for the duration of the exhibition.
Rosa Fidele: has completed several portraits recently: Tim Freedman of The Whitlams and Nabil Gazal, businessman and patriarch of the Gazal family. Rosa will once again donate a portrait sitting – to be auctioned at the 2008 Sydney Breast Cancer Pink Ball.
GENERAL NEWS
REPORT: on the Open Day at the MIDDLEHEAD Artists Colony, Mosman NOV 2nd (where Ann Cape and Nafisa Naomi have studios and there is a branch of the Julian Ashton Art School.)
PAA artists set up easels under the PAA banner in the gallery/amphitheatre space, talked with the throng of visitors to the colony and made drawings of those brave enough to sit for the artists.
Present were Pamela Irving; Janis Lander; Charles Plisek; Rizwana Ahmed (who drove from Camden); Julie Ballis (who drove from Canberra); and Paul Delprat who joined us for a while – the view across the harbour to the South Head was spectacular.
EXHIBITION DATES FOR 2009
1. NSW Parliament House – OPENING: APRIL 1st 2009 (Theme: Parliament Objects!)
2. Canberra Parliament House – OPENING: September 1st 2009 (Theme: Unsung Australian Heroes)
3. ArtHouse Annual Exhibition – OPENING: Oct 26th 2009 (Theme: TBA)
NOT TO BE MISSED!!!
THE PAA Australia Day BASH
WHEN: JANUARY 22nd 2009 6-9pm and onwards
WHERE: The ArtHouse Hotel – 275 Pitt St, Sydney
THEME: THE ARTIST’S MUSE
COST: $20 per head.
INVITATION ENCLOSED WITH NEWSLETTER
This is a perfect time to meet your fellow artists and have a relaxing get-together with friends and family. Do bring your Sketch Book – there will be a model to draw and a few fun prizes for the drawings. Food and wine at the ground floor Arthouse Cocktail Bar
PLEASE NOTE: if we do not attract at least 50 attendees, we will have to cancel this event. PAA is subsidizing the cost of tickets, which work out at a discounted price of $20 per head for members and friends.
REPORT ON THE 2008 ANNUAL EXHIBITION THE ART OF HEALING.
Huge opening night, big crush and many thanks to the fabulous PAA Committee for all their hard work in organizing this annual event! Chris O’Brien was unable to make it on Opening Night and he was replaced by Dr Kerwin Shannon, Director, Sydney Head & Neck Cancer Institute, who spoke eloquently about the remarkable research conducted by the Insititute.
This was our sixth Annual Exhibition at the Arthouse, and as an ARTISTS’ INITIATIVE we are going strong. Please bear in mind we have 3 exhibitions lined up for 2009 and 3 more the following year. So keep painting and sculpting and drawing and contributing wonderful art to these shows!!!
The result of the VOTES for People’s Choice: Winner – Jules Sevelson, (three votes ahead of Robyn Ross and five votes ahead of Kathrin Longhurst and Kevin Oxley.)
Thanks to the Hanging Team for a superb job – the Cocktail Bar downstairs had a line-up of exquisite small pieces, many people remarked on the overall high quality of the exhibition.
Big Thanks to the ArtHouse personnel for their assistance – Billie, Alyse, Ben and Nick.
Thanks to the Take-Down Team including all the committee members for a super-efficient job – starting at 9am and finishing at 10-15am. WOW!Â
Thanks to Paul & Co at the Artscene for acting as Carriers and Depot for the exhibition.
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Dear Fellow Artists + Friends of Portrait Artists Australia,
This past year has held some exciting moments and memorable events for a number of us. Many of us have had travel opportunities leading to exploring new themes for our own practice, whilst forging new friendships with like minds on the journey.
Our recent themed show The Art of Healing recognized and celebrated the careers of people working in health care. It is a reflection on the participating artists that the ArtHouse Hotel noted record numbers returning for second viewings throughout the run of the show. The People’s Choice Award was popular and will be a regular feature in future exhibitions. Congratulations to Jules Sevelson, whose painting “Getting to the Bottom of Things” attracted the most votes.
The holiday season is fast approaching so now is the time to consider those friends and family in celebration. If you do have any spare time between other commitments, painting loved ones is the perfect entry for the Doug Moran and the Shirley Hannan portrait prizes. As PAA is having a couple of themed shows in 2009, consider your subjects for the dual purpose of the Archibald circus and the PAA Parliament House Exhibitions – keeping in mind our Opening Nights in NSW on April 1st and in Canberra on September 1st.
We are aiming to enjoy a record gathering of PAA members and friends on January 22nd at the ArtHouse Hotel for Australia Day drinks. This will be a chance to catch up with each other and PAA will be subsidising the tickets, so please consider joining us and bring your sketch books as we are theming it around the “Artist’s Muse”- thus a nude model will be in attendance, just to keep the creative juices flowing… prizes during the night for drawings, awarded by mystery guest judge.
Last of all, I wish all of our members, your families and friends, a safe and loving Christmas and holiday season and very best wishes for the New Year,
Nafisa