Canberra artist Claire B Cusack's portrait of her brother Matthew has won The Percivals' 2024 People's Choice Award for painting.
"I burst into tears when they told me," she said.
The exhibition is an open art competition hosted by the City of Townsville.
We earlier this year told you about the touching story behind the painting.
Matthew, who suffered a range of health issues, passed away, on April 7, at the age of 55, just after the painting had been selected as a finalist in the prize.
The work also featured Claire's daughters Alice and Victoria, showing their close relationship with their uncle, something that had endured despite Matthew's many health challenges.
Claire and the girls and her parents travelled to Townsville to see the work hanging in the exhibition.
"It was wonderful," she said.
The painting, titled simply Matthew, was an enduring tribute to his resilience.
Matthew over his life had suffered major health issues including a learning disability, Hodgkin's lymphoma, a heart attack and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. At the end of his life, he was receiving palliative care, relying on a special oxygen system to breathe.
Claire said the painting would always be dear to her heart.
"I'm glad people got to see it and I think feel Matthew's spirit in the painting," she said.
- To see more of Claire B Cusack's work, she and fellow artist Sylvie Carter are having a joint exhibition, The Lake and Beyond, at the Yarralumla Gallery and Oaks Brasserie from September 8 to October 20.
