The Art Gallery of South Australia has announced that entries for the national Ramsay Art Prize are now open.
“The Ramsay Art Prize is a catalytic, career-defining moment for artists under 40 and has become an important platform within the visual art landscape in Australia,” said AGSA Director Rhana Devenport ONZM.
“In a time when artists have been in their homes, studios and art centres making, and seeding ideas, we are thrilled to invite them to share their work and enter one of the nation’s most generous art prizes.”
Held every two years, the $100,000 acquisitive prize invites submissions of new or recent work by Australian artists under the age of 40 working in any medium, including sculpture, painting, drawing, photography, installation and time-based art.
Presented by AGSA, the prize is generously supported by the James & Diana Ramsay Foundation in perpetuity. Embodying the values of James and Diana Ramsay’s legacy, the Ramsay Art Prize strongly supports contemporary Australian artists at a pivotal moment in their careers.
“Winning this prize meant a lot to me and it has created more opportunities for me to continue to make ambitious work and to share my practice with new audiences,” said 2019 Ramsay Art Prize winner Vincent Namatjira OAM. “I have also used it to create opportunities for other young artists in remote Indigenous communities.”
All works selected as finalists will be exhibited in a major exhibition at AGSA from 22 May to 22 August 2021. The winner will be announced at the official opening on Friday 21 May 2021 and their work will be acquired into the Gallery’s collection.
Finalists will be selected by a national judging panel including Wiradjuri artist Karla Dickens, Dr Daniel Mudie Cunningham, Director of Programs at Carriageworks and Rebecca Evans, Curator of Decorative Arts & Design at AGSA.
The 2021 Ramsay Art Prize finalist exhibition will include a People’s Choice Prize generously supported by sponsor Lipman Karas. The People’s Choice Prize is a non-acquisitive cash prize of $15,000 awarded to the artist chosen by a public vote.
Entries for the 2021 Ramsay Art Prize are now open and close Friday 11 December 2020. For more information, including entry guidelines, visit: www.agsa.sa.gov.au for details.
Image: Ramsay Art Prize 2019 featuring Close Contact by Vincent Namatjira (installation view), Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide – photo by Grant Hancock