The 38th annual Radford College art show kicked off with a gala event on Friday night where the winners were announced and keen buyers started snapping up artworks from paintings, to photography, to pottery.
Always a popular event that attracts attention from beyond only the Radford community, the show this year had 300 entries.
The show continues this weekend, with artwork for viewing and sale in the college hall from 10am to 4pm Saturday and Sunday.
The show was judged this year by Canberra Museum and Art Gallery senior curator in visual arts Virginial Rigney.
First prize went to Canberra silk artist Carole Osmotherly for her work Two Trees, a painting on silk using wax resist.
Highly commended was Canberra contemporary landscape artist Caroline Reid for her mixed media piece Verde (Verdant).
The emerging artist prize went to Zoe Stevenson for her acrylic work Afternoon Tea.
Sophia McPherson won the student artist prize for her pencil work Dragon.
Before revealing the works she had chosen as the winners, Mrs Rigney said she was looking for "something that surprises me".
"I'm also really looking forward to seeing the student work because Radford has a strong tradition in their art practice," she said.
"I think what's also really great in this coming-out-of-COVID period, is just this sense of creating events that bring people together through creative practice.
"It's also about people buying and taking something home and enjoying and living with it and that, of course, brings money to the artist and also to the school."
The show has been put on by the Radford College Parents and Friends Association and curated by artist and parent Camila Smith.
Great night @RadfordArtShow last night #Canberra pic.twitter.com/C9WPLleXxL
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Parents and Friends president Lisa McPherson said student volunteers also helped to stage the show.
And demand for the paintings and other artwork was always high and the appetite for perusing big following COVID.
"We actually ran it last year and had it online the previous year. We were fortunate last year we had that little window," Mrs McPherson said.
"We have approximately 60 artists and just under 300 works on display, with a real mixture of mediums. Oils, pastels, pottery, photography, a little bit of woodwork."
The artists apply to be part of the show.
"We have people from a variety of backgrounds entering, Canberra and regional artists," Mrs McPherson said.
"We have students in the show but also a display of artwork from students displayed on the stage which is not part of the competition but parents and others can see what's going on in the college."
Curator Camila Smith had the challenge of making sure all the works were displayed well.
"There's so many artists and so many genres. This year there are a lot of landscapes for some reason. Obviously, everyone's been painting outside," she said.
Ms Smith said while she arranged the works by genre, she did like to mix it up a little.
"It just shows you can hang something very modern with something a bit more traditional," she said.
- Entry to the art show from 10am to 4pm on Saturday and Sunday is by gold coin donation. Radford College is at 1 College Street, Bruce.
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