Labour weekend heralds the opening of Waiheke’s most prestigious art event, the Walker & Hall Waiheke Art Award. This Award which runs annually, attracts entries from all parts of New Zealand for the premier award of $5,000, a Merit Award of $1,000, and a $500 Award for a Figurative Work sponsored by The Skin Institute.
The prize winner is announced at a Gala event on Friday 23 October, where guests will enjoy wines by Casita Miro and a delicious range of spring bites. At this event one lucky ticket holder will win a strand of South Sea Pearls, valued at $2,900, courtesy of Walker & Hall.
“This exhibition is a real indicator of the diversity of contemporary two dimensional artworks, paintings, photography, works on paper, currently being created by New Zealand artists. Many prize winners have gone on to win other major awards and achieve representation at our dealer galleries”, says gallery director, Linda Chalmers.
Each year the gallery invites a different selector to review the entries and judge the Award. The 2020 selector is Richard Wolfe, New Zealand author, artist and museum curator. Thirty-six finalists have been selected from 100 entries.
Also opening in the gallery at Labour Weekend is senior New Zealand artist Denis O’Connor, with his exhibition, Return Mail.
Denis O’Connor came to Waiheke 50 years ago, at a time when handwritten correspondence in the form of letters and postcards was pivotal to communication. Return Mail takes the postcard format and the Waiheke postcode, 1081, to explore the island’s geography, social and art history and contributions of other national identities who have lived here.
Take a leisurely trip to Waiheke this coming Labour Weekend and take in these significant exhibitions at the Waiheke Community Art Gallery.
