Artist Patricia Piccinini and philanthropists Peter and Joan Clemenger have been honoured by the 2014 Melbourne Art Foundation Awards for the Visual Arts, before 200 plus guests at a gala dinner hosted at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA) last Thursday July 17, where Director Juliana Engberg delivered the keynote speech.
Piccinini was awarded the esteemed Melbourne Art Foundation Artist Award in recognition of her outstanding achievement as an Australian artist for a comprehensive body of work. The Visionary Award was presented to Peter Clemenger, Executive Chairman of prominent Australian creative agency Clemenger BBDO, and his wife Joan Clemenger, for their outstanding contribution to arts philanthropy and commitment to progressing the status of contemporary Australian art.
The award winners each received a sterling silver wall sculpture by Victorian artist Robert Bridgewater, titled Waking Child, 2007 to mark their prize. The sculpture, organic in structure, is comprised of sharp textural rays, reminiscent of an earthly creation.
Since the early 1990s, Piccinini’s art has investigated the intersection between scientific progress and ethical questions, playing with concepts of what is “natural” in an age of digital technology, bioengineering and human reproduction across several art forms including photography, video and sculpture. In 2003 Piccinini presented We Are Family at the Australian pavilion at the 50th Venice Biennale. Her work was also included in the 13th Biennale of Sydney in 2002.
Commenting on the Visionary Award, Anna Pappas, Chairman of the Board, Melbourne Art Foundation said: “This award honours two remarkable Australian benefactors of both the visual arts and performing arts. Peter and Joan Clemenger have shown tireless dedication and attentiveness in their support for Australian artists and artistic diversity, both nationally and beyond.”
The Clemengers’ history of philanthropy includes the Clemenger Art Award, a triennial exhibition and award that celebrated the ongoing achievement of some of Australia’s most distinguished contemporary artists that spanned nearly twenty years and was awarded to Bea Maddock, John Nixon, John Mawurndjul, Judy Watson and Ah Xian, among others, also illuminates their commitment to focusing the public’s attention on a diverse range of prolific Australian artists. With a passion to continuously reinvigorate Melbourne, in 2012 Peter Clemenger introduced the idea of an “open studio” event in the suburbs of Daylesford and Hepburn, enabling 30 artists in the area to open their studios and share individual creative processes over a four-week period.
2014 Melbourne Art Foundation Awards for the Visual Arts
Portrait of Patricia Piccinini by Alli Oughtred
