Artistic pair honoured to be finalists
Two Whangārei artists have been selected as finalists in one of the country’s longest-running art contests, which has a cash prize of $20,000. Megan Lavin-McIsaac and Sally Spicer are among 37 finalists from a record 451 entries in the prestigious Adam Portraiture Award. Lavin-McIsaac said she was “humbled and amazed” to have been selected.
“Having entered twice before over the past 10 years, and being rejected left me feeling that I had no chance, but I thought, ‘Hey, you gotta be in to win’.”
South African born, she immigrated here in 2008 and says she has been painting off and on the whole of her life.
She started The New Zealand Artist Magazine to promote New Zealand artists.
After Covid, she digitised the magazine and started painting again.
The magazine is now a website where artists are profiled and can sell their work.
Her piece shows children forming a conga line on their way to Timatanga Community School.
Spicer said she was primarily a portrait painter, “so this competition is significant to me, and being a finalist feels like an achievement”.
She was a finalist for the Adam Portraiture Award in 2020 and recently had a solo show − Extraordinary Ordinary − at Hangar Gallery in Whangārei.
Her finalist painting is of her daughter, Lottie, with her cat Jelly.
“I strive to make portraits that represent the subject’s likeness and also express a state of being that everyone can relate to and connect with.
“Having the painting exhibited at The New Zealand Portrait Gallery is a huge thrill, and feels a bit surreal.” The Adam Portraiture Award is regarded as beign the country’s most prestigious and popular portraiture prize.
The biennial competition for painted portraits is held at The New Zealand Portrait Gallery Te Pūkenga Whakaata and sponsored by the Adam Foundation.
It provides painters at all stages of their careers with the opportunity to showcase their talents on the national stage, while also playing an important role in recording the changing face of Aotearoa.
The inaugural competition was held in 2000 and called the National Portrait Competition.
It has been known as the Adam Portraiture Award since 2002.
Since 2006 the winning artworks have been acquired into the New Zealand Portrait Gallery collection.
In 2020 the Award expanded its judging panel to two judges.