2010

GLOVER PRIZE WINNER

Ian Waldron
Walach Dhaarr (Cockle Creek)

oil & acrylic on Tasmanian oak
120cm x 150cm

Ian Waldron from Cairns, Queensland has won the 2010 Glover Prize with his work titled Walach Dhaarr (Cockle Creek). The work depicts a Tasmanian landscape, one of the criteria for entry. He has placed totem poles that relate to his northern aboriginal culture throughout the work. They hover in the foreground while in the background the observer can see Cockle Creek and the hills above. The artist has used words from the Kurtjar language; Yuaarr (midden) and Ngkithagh (tide), which appear in balance with their English equivalent. In creating his work on Tasmanian Oak, Ian has drawn a considered connection between his northern indigenous culture and the landscape of Tasmania.

Ian is the first Indigenous artist to win the Glover Prize and also the first mainland artist to win in the seven years the competition has been held.

Speaking about his work, artist Ian Waldron said that Cockle Creek is significant for its rich material history in the form of middens, and as the site of positive exchange between Australian Aborigines and French navigators in the late eighteenth century.

“Through Walach dhaarr, I have tried to demonstrate that it is important to highlight the enduring power of connection to land, regardless of the time that has elapsed since the physical habitation by the traditional owners,” Ian said.

“The contemporary pole-like appearance of the trees is a reminder that connection to the land continues in contemporary times and is not lost in the mists of time. It is living history,” he added.

Respected artist and Trustee of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Imants Tillers, along with fellow judging panellists, Maudie Palmer OA, and Jane Stewart, said they were impressed by the diversity and high standard of the works submitted for consideration for the 2010 Glover Prize.

“As Australia’s richest annual landscape art prize, the competition has developed a well-deserved reputation for attracting diverse pieces from well-respected artists,” Mr Tillers said.

Executive Director of the Federal Group, Ms. Julia Farrell, said as principal sponsors of the Glover Prize, she was delighted with the painting the judges selected as this year’s winner.