# Muswellbrook Art Prize

The Muswellbrook Art Prize is an acquisitive art competition hosted by the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre in the Muswellbrook Shire, New South Wales, Australia.

## History

The competition was first held in 1958, at that time as the Festival of the Valley Art Prize, as an annual event until the establishment of the Regional Arts Centre as a purpose-built standalone complex in 1999.

### Timeline

1958 - Festival of the Valley Art Prize opened in Muswellbrook as an annual acquisitive art competition
1956 - Works on Paper category added to the Art Prize (as the Drawing Prize)
1961 - Acquisitive Traditional Prize category added to the Art Prize (until 1968)
1971 - Acquisitive Muswellbrook Pottery Prize category added to the Art Prize (until 1976)
1974 - Art Prize renamed The Muswellbrook Art Prize and Purchase Exhibition and The Muswellbrook Pottery Prize
1987 - Acquisitive Muswellbrook Pottery Prize renamed Muswellbrook Open Ceramic Award a restored as a category
1987 - Acquisitive Muswellbrook Photographic Award category added to the Art Prize
2002 - Muswellbrook Art Prize becomes a biennial event with winning art works housed in the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre Collection
2016 - Prize monies increased to $50,000 for Painting, $10,000 for Works on Paper, and $10,000 for Ceramics
2021 - Acquisitive Mullins Conceptual Photography Prize added to the collection of Photography again.

## Description

The objective of the Muswellbrook Art Prize was stated at inception as '...to foster the interest in and understanding of art in the Upper Hunter Valley and to play a part, however modest, in the promotion of art and the encouragement of artists generally throughout Australia, the prize winning works to form the nucleus of a Muswellbrook Municipal Council Collection.'
At $70,000, the Muswellbrook Art Prize was in 2016 the second-richest art prize in South-East Asia.

## Muswellbrook Art Prize Winners 2011-2015
### 2011 Prize Winners

Catherine and Jennifer Strut (Painting)
Peter Griffen (Works on Paper)
Jan Downes (Ceramics)

### 2013 Prize Winners

Margaret Loy Pula (Painting)
Claire Martin (Works in Paper)
Vicki Hamilton (Ceramics)

### 2015 Prize Winners

Nick Ferguson (Painting)
John Bokor (Works on Paper)
Jane McKenzie (Ceramics)

### All Prize Winners 1958-2015
#### Painting

Suzanne Archer
David Aspden
Peter Atkins
Alec Baker
Sydney Ball Michael Bell Marion Borgelt
Dorothy Braund Viola Bromley Liz Cuming Jacqueline Dabron
Stephen Earle Nick Ferguson
Roy Fluke
Dale Frank Peter Gardiner Thomas Gleghorn Geoff Harvey
Weaver Hawkins Pearl Ingram Jean Isherwood Louis James Ian Johnstone
Colin Jordan Hanna Kay Michael Kitching Richard Larter Margot Lewers Margaret Loy Pula Elwyn Lynn John Martin Noel McKenna Dennis Miller
John Montefiore Angus Nivison
John Ogburn Mike Parr William Peascod Charles Pettinger David Rankin Henry Salkauskas Michael Shannon Eric Smith David Strachan Catherine & Jennifer Strutt Lillian Sutherland Lezlie Tilley Rosemary Valadon Fred Williams

#### Works on Paper

Suzanne Archer John Bokor Francis Celtlan Tony Coleing Barbara Davidson Janet Dawson Garry Foye Peter Gill Strom Gould Guy Grey-Smith Peter Griffen Rew Hanks David Harrex Ronald Hawke Mimi Jaksic-Berger Garry Jones Jane Lander Frank McNamara Claire Martin Bea Maddock Kiata Mason
George Moore Murdo Morrison Angus Nivison Robert Shepherd Paul Smith Cameron Sparks Dallas Sym Choon Imre Szigeti Rosemary Valadon Paul White
Margaret Wilson Salvatore Zofrea Vera Zulumovski

#### Ceramics

Hildegard Anstice William Brownhill Enid Cryer Greg Daly Peter Dobinson Jan Downes Toni Fischer Vicki Hamilton Gudrun Klix Joanne Linsdell William Lungas Janet Mansfield Jane McKenzie Kathryn McMiles Bunty Mitchell Susanne Moore Lyn Nash Chester Nealie Megan Puls
Pam Sinnott Vipoo Srivilasa
Ray Taylor Peter Tilley Peter Wheeler

## Muswellbrook Art Prize adjudicators 1958-2015

Bruce Adams John Bailey Tony Bond William Bowmore Barbara Blaxland David Bradshaw Roger Butler Edmund Capon Grace Cochrane Dennis Colesy Tracy Cooper-Lavery
Richard Crebbin Enid Cryer Gill Docking Deborah Edwards Joe Eisenberg Judi Elliot Andrew Fergusson Brian Finemore Tim Fisher James Gleeson Mollie Grieves Gillian Grigg Michael Hedger John Henshaw Sali Herman Ian Howard
Robert Hughes Garry Jones Michael Keighery Peter Laverty Euan MacDonald Ivan McMeekin Hal Missingham Nick Mitzevich Bernice Murphy Chester Nealie John Olsen Peter O’Neill Desiderius Orban Barry Pearce Ron Ramsey Lloyd Rees Peter Rushforth Anne Ryan Bernard Sahm Maisy Stapleton Leigh Summers Helen Sweeney Daniel Thomas David Thomas Laurie Thomas Peter Timms Bruce Tindale Tony Tuckson Guy Warren Joy Warren Jane Watters Bill Wright

## Muswellbrook Art Prize sponsors 1958-2015

Muswellbrook Shire Council Costain Coal Australia Ltd Esso Standard Oil (Australia) Ltd Hebden Mining Company Hunter Valley Printing Company Pty Ltd Muswellbrook Coal Company Peabody Resources Ltd State Bank of NSW Upper Hunter Timbers Pty Ltd Bengalla Mining Company Pty Ltd