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Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship 2009 finalists

This year, the finalists' exhibition is online, with the winner and highly commended on display at the Brett Whiteley Studio 12 September – 29 November 2009.

2009 winner: Nicole Kelly Figure in landscape 2009 oil on canvas

online finalists' exhibition >
winner Nicole Kelly's body of work >

Nicole Kelly from Engadine in NSW has been chosen as the winner of the 2009 Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship for her body of work, represented by Figure in landscape 2009.

The Sutherland Shire artist is in her fourth year at the National Art School where she is completing her Bachelor of Fine Arts Honours. Nicole was a Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship finalist in 2008, her first year of eligibility. She was also the winner of the Robert Le Gay Brereton Memorial Prize in 2007, which aims to promote and encourage the art of draughtsmanship,

The judges for the 2009 Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship were artist, John Beard, Art Gallery of New South Wales director, Edmund Capon, and Barry Pearce, the Gallery’s head of Australian art. 124 entries were received from around Australia, 11 of which were selected as finalists. Two artists were highly commended: Becky Gibson for her work Milk jug 2009, and Jessica Mais Wright for her work Day and night 2008.

John Beard said of winner Nicole Kelly that her "work stood out because of its direct rawness and forceful presence, and especially because of its honesty. The judges felt that she will benefit enormously from a study period overseas, to experience in person the art that has inspired her, realising for herself that painting must be held in an act of a precarious state of imbalance in order to retain its intensity. We think Nicole will be receptive to this phenomenon. The strong competition provided by the 11 finalists made our decision-making a challenging and rewarding experience and we especially want to highly commend the works of Jessica Mais Wright and Becky Gibson.”

About the scholarship

Each year, the Brett Whiteley Studio, administered by the Art Gallery of New South Wales, invites applications for a major travelling art scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to a talented young artist with an established body of work, who is best able to demonstrate the use and benefit of the scholarship to further his/her art education in Europe.

In 1999, Mrs Beryl Whiteley, the artist’s mother, generously made the funds available for the scholarship, both to encourage excellence in painting and to offer young artists the same opportunities to develop their careers as were afforded to her son.

Entry for Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship is open to Australian artists aged between 20 and 30. The scholarship comprises an amount of $25,000 and a three-month residency at Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, which is administered by the Art Gallery of New South Wales. The $25,000 must be used by the successful applicant to further their art education in Europe for a period of at least six months, three months of which must be used in conjunction with the residency.

scholarship selection process & entry requirements >