fresh choice

My interest in the boundary lines blurring between art and illustration continue to deepen. Last weekend I went to see the Archibald Prize: an annual nation wide portrait painting competition. It’s a very popular exhibition and if you make it into the show you’ve pretty much made it from then on. This year it seemed that almost every painting was a different subject painted by the same group of artists that have been selected in previous years. Thick, loose, dripping brushstrokes seem to be what’s in at the moment, and although I envy this type of painting skill, and love looking at it, I wonder why it’s the same each year.

Therefore I was beyond impressed, and surprised to see an intricate painting by Kathryn Del Barton! I love her work (it’s very hard to find on the internet). But my delight wasn’t only about seeing one of her works large and in the flesh, it was that I’ve always considered her work to lean more on the side of illustration than art.

I realise I’m not defining what I interpret the differences to be very clearly. I think it maybe has something to do with what I was, and was not, allowed to hand in while I was at art school - if I wanted to pass, that is. (Funnily enough she and I went to the same college only a few years apart. I wonder if she did similar work back then?)

Anyway, back to Kathryn. Her work is so wonderful, and I stood by her painting for a while, listening to people comment that it was their favourite. It really stood out from the rest, and was a fresh choice for that exhibition. One I’m excited about.