The Tom Bass Prize for Figurative Sculpture in Paddington, New South Wales | Arts and entertainment

The Tom Bass Prize for Figurative Sculpture

Locality: Paddington, New South Wales

Phone: +61 2 9565 4851

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25.01.2022 2020 Finalist Dave Hicksons Gregors Acceptance. Bisque fired clay, and white acrylic paint, 20 x 8 x 7cm. About the work: Taking its inspiration from Kafkas Metamorphosis, where Gregor eventually comes to accept that he has become an insect: this sculpture explores dislocation from the body by depicting the neuro- muscular condition Cervical Dystonia, which causes involuntary muscle contractions in my neck. This is partly remedied with regular Botox injections causing temporary muscle atrophy. @davehickson1 @artmonthsydney

24.01.2022 Exhibition closes at 5pm, open again tomorrow 10am - 5pm. Show must close 22 March. Dont miss it! Pictured: 2020 Finalists 908: Carl & Eden Plaisteds Luna, reclaimed Tasmanian Oak, PVA glue, linseed oil wax, 24 x 24 x 24cm. About the work: This hybrid form is a study of both human cytology and astrogeology: the microscopic world of cells reflecting the macrocosm of planetary terrains. @908.art.design @mcontemporary @artmonthsydney

24.01.2022 2020 Finalist Dale Miles Eternal Muse, Hydrostone, pigment, wax, 57 x 99 x 31cm. About the work: In Eternal Muse I have focused on exploring new ways to expand on the lineage of relief sculpture. The figure holds all of the anomalies that make relief distinct from sculpture on the round and allows the viewer to move behind the visual illusion to perceive the works mechanics and function on the eye. There are lots of surprises in this piece that will reward a patient viewer. @dale0miles @australiangalleries @artmonthsydney

24.01.2022 Tom Bass Prize on show until this Sunday 22 March! 2020 Finalist Todd Fullers Harry II, Terracotta, silver paint, ink, data projector, animation: To see the ocean for the first time. 53 x 29 x 24cm. About the work: This work depicts iconic Harry Thompson. Famous for winning the lottery and travelling from Western NSW to Port Macquarie where his van was bogged on Shellys beach. He would live here for 40 years, have a lookout named after him and become the unofficial Mayor of the beach. Harry is in a moment of contemplation, transfixed in his own memories through a hand drawn animation. @fuller_todd @mayspacesyd @artmonthsydney @ Juniper Hall

23.01.2022 Finalists Exhibition open today until 3pm. Last days to catch the show - must close on Sunday 22 March. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Sophie Clagues Thinker, Stalker, Shifter, Walker. Steel, clear-coat, 185 x 120 x 60cm. About the sculpture: Thinker, Stalker, Shifter, Walker refers to an abstracted figure through gesture, movement, balance and tension. It occupies positive and negative space and has a shifting form based on viewpoint. It is empathetic to the audience, and it quivers and wobbles to vibration from passing bodies. Appearing as part human, part animal and part machine, it just wants to be understood. @sophieclague @artmonthsydney

23.01.2022 Exhibition open today until 3pm. 53 figurative sculptures on display! Must close Sunday. 2020 Finalist Dai Lis, What are you thinking about?, 2019. Glazed stoneware Girl: 30 x 14 x 12cm. Cat: 7 x 10 x 5cm. About the work: My artworks are based upon the relationships between people, animals and objects in everyday life. Moments of activity, of contemplation or unguarded moments when no one is watching are the moments when people can reveal their true nature, it is these moments that interest me. @dai_li_ @artmonthsydney

22.01.2022 Last three days to catch the Finalists Exhibition. Open today 10am - 3pm, over the weekend 10am - 5pm. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Sergio Hernandez Merchans Im Still Here (Flowers). Recycled Carrara Bianco Marble and mild steel (base), 39 x 20 x 18cm. About the work: I wasnt there. I dont know the exact place but I know the peak, so, I imagined that someday I could find it. Find this place where flowers bloom in the shape of a man.... You are still here through ideas, teachings, memories. Those are the flowers that will grow, even through rocks. @sergiosculptor @mcontemporary @artmonthsydney

21.01.2022 2020 Finalist Jessica Murtaghs Strangling Vine, glass, 42 x 27 x 21cm. About the work: A prolonged demise carried within a small seed. Mortality rained down from above by unwitting birds, drop harmlessly to the forest floor only to die of exposure. A single seed, finding fertile ground or crevice, germinates and grows into the enveloping embrace of a cage. The tree within perishes but the strangling vine lives on with blue sky peeking between each twisting branch. @vintagemurtagh @artmonthsydney

21.01.2022 2020 Finalist Carolyn V Watsons Newlands. Epoxy clay, taxidermy foam form, spring steel rods, bees wax, ink, pastel primer, 97 x 84 x 44cm. About the work: Watsons intuitive sculptural process centres on the balance between the addition of handmade elements and the slow, physical change that the original material undergoes. Appearing strange and otherworldly, Newlands, projects a familial bond. The simple act of protecting the other, heightens the compositional interaction and compassion between these two forms. @carolynvwatson @artmonthsydney

21.01.2022 2020 Finalist Christopher J. Edwardss Origin, Silicon Bronze, 46 x 35cm when fitted together. About the work: In ancient Egypt, an egg was revered as the origin of the world. Many cultures believed eggs to be the source of new life from inanimate matter. The egg shape is a metaphor for the beginning of life and fertility. It has been the basis of many past creation stories. The skull is a symbol of mortality. Being found within the egg shape perhaps suggests an ancient fossil. @cjedwards_sculpture @colvillegallery @artmonthsydney

18.01.2022 Finalists Exhibition open today 10am - 5pm. 53 wonderfully diverse and interesting sculptures on display for you to enjoy. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Helene Boyers sculpture The Blooming, flame-worked soda lime and borosilicate glass, glass paints, air dry clay, acrylics, found dome, assembled, 40 x 23 x 23cm. About the work: A celebration of female fecundity, endurance and emancipation, referencing cross culture goddess figurines, the nude in western art and the vigour of plant forms like rhododendron buds and kelp. Although the sculptures subject is robust, placing the work under glass alludes to its alternate precious and fragile qualities and also invisible barriers to progress. @hmboyer @artmonthsydney

17.01.2022 Exhibition open till 3pm today, Fri 10am - 3pm and Sat + Sun 10am - 5pm. Must close Sunday! Pictured: 2020 Finalist Lucinda McDonalds Lose it. Welded steel, 68 x 20 x 30cm. About the work: Lose It is about letting go. After an unsuccessful first attempt to depict overwhelming sadness in my sculpture I decided to lose a drooping neck and chop off the head adding a loose loop to the body. Letting Go. Losing It. An emotional twist and significant of extreme human emotions. A base made up of steel offcuts welded and ground back creating a tactile, textured surface. @lucinda_mcdonald3 @artmonthsydney

17.01.2022 Last days to catch the Tom Bass Prize Finalists Exhibition! Cant make the exhibition? We can send you a catalogue - DM us! Pictured: 2020 Finalist Georgina Mills Desire for desires, Aqua Resin 63 x 46 x 104cm. Desire for desires is a figurative representation of a discontentment with life. The heaviness of the pose captures an intangible energy associated with dissatisfaction - a symptom usually experienced as part of a deeper underlying restlessness with self. Unwittingly, this realization can surface once the everyday stimulus of life has been removed, manifesting itself as boredom. @millsgeorgie @artmonthsydney

16.01.2022 At this stage the Tom Bass Prize Finalists exhibition will remain open this week. Opening hours are: Wed Fri 10am 3pm, Sat & Sun 10am 5pm. This Sunday 22 March is the final day of the exhibition. Visitation to the exhibition has been staggered and people have sufficient space around them to be able to move through the exhibition safely. Our Life Drawing and Artist Talk events have been cancelled due to the nature of these events and social distancing responsibilities. TBP is keeping a close eye on COVID-19 developments and are abreast of the latest Government information we will keep you updated as the situation changes. Thank you for your support. Pictured: Tom Bass AM, Pigtails, 1970, Bronze, 110 x 50 x 29cm. Currently on show with three other Tom Bass sculptures at Juniper Hall.

15.01.2022 Still a few hours to catch the Finalists Exhibition. Open today until 5pm. Exhibition must close 22 March. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Kylie Douglass, Arcadia, cuttle fish bone, 50 x 20 x 20cm. About the work: A goddess of peace, harmony and nature Arcadia represents the past, present and impending future. Partially defeated by the forces of human kind, Her archaic form looks toward the sky in hope, yet is boughless from prior response and defeat. Escorted by flora and fauna from the oceans to the skies, She rests frozen. Connected with the delicate and layered beauty of the cuttle fish bone, Arcadia relevantly defines the essence of our fragile home, Mother Earth. @kyliedouglassart @artmonthsydney

15.01.2022 Tom Bass Prize Winner ($15,000) Shane Nicholas (VIC), with his sculpture 'Scanned Figure with Arms Outstretched' (middle left). Highly Commended Award ($4,000) Miroslav Kratky with his sculpture 'Big Ear' (middle right). Curators Choice ($2,000) Louis Pratt with his sculpture 'Regret and Legacy' (far left).... People's Choice ($1,000) Paul Trefry with his sculpture 'Man in a Cube' (far right).

14.01.2022 Exhibition open today 10am - 5pm. Second last Sunday to catch the show! Pictured: 2020 Finalist Karl de Waals The Pugilist, the Poet and Fabienne. Found and reworked concrete Queensland house stumps, 142 x 180 x 120cm. About the sculpture: This artwork pays homage to The Dada Boxer Arthur Cravan, the poet Mina Loy and their child Fabienne. Three found house stumps which once bore the weight of a house above finally liberated. Sculpted with a sledgehammer into the desired form, they reveal a balance of strength and vulnerability, solidity and fragility. Much like what I imagine the love Arthur and Mina shared. @karldewaal @artmonthsydney

14.01.2022 Last weekend to catch the Finalists Exhibition! Open Sat + Sun 10am - 5pm. Pictured: Karmyn Gibson, Untitled, 2019, cement, marble dust, steel, 185 x 32 x 32cm. About the work: Exploring the possibilities of connection with human and non-human bodies. Where do our bodies begin and end? My interests involve drawing attention to their individual qualities subverting their visual function. This sculpture is a gesture toward the transformative power of the object and the shifting modalities and politics between organic and non-organic bodies within a societal cemetery of apathy. How might we look beyond nostalgia and embrace the spiritualties of new forms? @karmyn_gibson @artmonthsydney

13.01.2022 2020 Finalist Stephen Bird’s ‘Man with crossed arms’. Glazed earthenware, enamel and epoxy, 102 x 28 x 26cm. About the work: ‘Man with crossed arms’ is one of the larger figures from my recent installation ‘Continent of Exiles’. A slightly deranged looking young man with the glazed expression of love in his eyes, and arms that cradle the remnants of a disturbing past. @stephen_bird_artist @olsen_gallery @artmonthsydney

13.01.2022 2020 Finalist William Eicholtzs Terpsichores Tribute. Polymer cement and synthetic glaze, 200 x 400 x 300cm the group. About the work: Terpsichores Tribute is a joyous exploration of the connection between sculpture and dance, artist and muse. In Greek mythology, Terpsichore is the revered muse of dance, although almost forgotten now, she has called artists through the centuries. Working with dancer Rhys Bobridge, this is my tribute to the divine inspiration of dance, Terpsichore. @dishboydreaming @maunsellwickesgallery @artmonthsydney

12.01.2022 The 2020 Finalist Exhibition was a diverse selection of 53 sculptures by 52 artists from across Australia, all inspired by the human figure. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Donald Kemarre Thompsons Business Man, 82 x 37 x 18cm. About the work: Hes painted (apernelheyel) up for songs and dancing, visitors from all directions can join in, just for a good time or entertainment for all. A lot of Lore songs, men are painted up and singing. Men paint themselves behind a humpy, women are singing then men come out and the singing women turn around to face the men, men dance a cycle of many songs, too much song. Donald Kemarre Thompson aka Crook hat. @artists_of_ampilatwatja @artmonthsydney

12.01.2022 Open today until 5pm. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Kate Gormans Untitled 1# (From the forest of lost dreams and rising anxieties). Bronze, 24 x 7 x 18cm. About the work: As climate change noticeably impacts our everyday lives, levels of solastalgia the distress that is produced by environmental change is rising. Untitled 1# (From the forest of lost dreams and rising anxieties), embodies a sense of eco-anxiety caused by increasing ecological destruction. @kategorman_art @artmonthsydney

12.01.2022 Last days to catch the Finalists Exhibition. Must close Sunday 22 March. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Grace Blakes Apparitions of other bodies; Alien / Non-Human / Generated (1 and 2 from a series of 9), PLA. Each sculpture is: 50 x 25 x 25cm. About the work: These sculptures are part of a series of 9 which formed the centerpiece for my recent exhibition Bio Spectre. The exhibition implements the visual characteristics of anatomy and dissection, advertising and product presentation to render science fiction like speculative anatomy. #graceblake @artmonthsydney

12.01.2022 The 2020 Tom Bass Prize opened just over a month ago, we thought we’d share some pictures from the opening night celebration. You can find more on our Facebook account - link in profile. @ Juniper Hall

12.01.2022 Only 4 days left to see the Finalists Exhibition. 52 sculptures by 53 artists from across Australia. Dont miss it! Pictured: 2020 Finalist Sue Applebys Rosy cheeked dreamer. Paper clay, underglaze and copper oxide, 22 x 20 x 19cm. About the work: I am a dreamer, a wonderer. I seem to always be exploring new ideas, on the move, wondering if I am in the right place, on the right path. I have an insatiable urge to dream of alternatives - some may even say it is to my detriment! This artwork represents me wondering as well as all creative spirits imagining new directions beyond the reality they see before them. @sue_appleby_artist @artmonthsydney

10.01.2022 Exhibition open today until 3pm. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Misklectics Pudica (detail). Gypsum, pigment, resin, steel, wood, 180 x 50 x 50cm. About the work: Pudica serves as a hypothetical sarcophagus, portraying the death of the Great Barrier Reef in the face of the climate emergency. Combining technicoloured plastic with bone-white gypsum to summon the symbiotic concepts of beauty and decay, life and death, Pudica takes the shape of both a reef and the female body a mother which once gave life. @misklectic @artmonthsydney

09.01.2022 2020 Finalist Sassy Parks Swimmer. Stoneware, glaze and overglazes 39 x 21 x 33cm. About the work: Sassy Park is a recent graduate from the National Art School. Her practice questions generally accepted ideas and stereotypes by referencing ceramic traditions including pots and figures. Inspired by Paralympian athletes, Swimmer draws parallels between the fragmentation of ancient artefacts and human disability with the glaze giving both the idea of water and deterioration. @sassypark @robingibsongallery @artmonthsydney

08.01.2022 Due to COVID19 developments the 2020 Finalists Exhibition will close to the public today at 5pm - earlier than advertised. Thank you to our finalists, the visitors, our volunteers and judges, donors and sponsors. We are so proud of the 2020 exhibition and look forward to bringing you more figurative sculpture in 2022! Weve still got a few finalist works to share with you and we will also be announcing the Peoples Choice winner on Monday, so keep following! Stay safe everyone and take care

07.01.2022 Exhibition open 10am - 5pm Saturday & Sunday. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Mark Booths sculpture, Holding Pattern, PVC pipe, vinyl wrap, polyurethane, 70 x 120 x 140cm. About the work: There is an industrial-ness inherent in the utilitarian pipes and support system of Holding Pattern, yet the exaggerated designs and systematic motifs on the sculptures surface allude to nature and the organic. Synthetic hardware is accumulated and manipulated into tight modular agglomerations that reference molecular configurations and internal workings of the human body. @marktbooth @artmonthsydney

07.01.2022 The Tom Bass Prize opening night celebration was held on Thursday 5 March, where we welcomed a record number of attendees, including most of the 2020 finalists, donors, sponsors and special guests. This was the evening that the Prizes were awarded to an excited crowd and we heard from the judges and special guest Lea Ferris - who officially opened the 2020 Prize. The Board and management of TBSSS would like to pay tribute to the hard work of the Prize Committee and to all art...ists and volunteers who assisted in the smooth running of the exhibition. We would also like to thank our judges for 2020: Ingrid Morley, Jennifer Turpin and Alex Seton who had a very difficult and unenviable task! Congratulations to the Prize winners and all the Finalists! We look forward to bringing you more figurative sculpture in 2022. Follow along for further details!

06.01.2022 Exhibition open tomorrow 10am - 3pm. Just 5 days left to catch the exhibition before it closes! Pictured: 2020 Finalist Mehrnoosh Nik Tavakolis, Madame. Plaster, 34 x 10 x 7cm. About the work: Madame expresses the personality and emotions of the figure through my interpretation of her body position. I have used self-reflection to create the unique nature of Madames expression. The body and our relationship with them requires perpetual maintenance. @mehrnoosh_niktavakoli @artmonthsydney

06.01.2022 The 2020 Tom Bass Prize opened just over a month ago, we thought wed share some pictures from the opening night celebration. You can find more on our Facebook account - link in profile. @ Juniper Hall

06.01.2022 2020 Finalist Kirsten Perrys Eclipse. Mid-fire ceramic, glaze, 35 x 21 x 21cm. About the sculpture: This work represents the man in the moon during an eclipse. The texture of the lunar landscape is translated into the figures face with golden light emerging from the crown. I use soft white foam to carve the face which is translated into ceramic through the mould making process. Transformed into heavy, brittle ceramic, echoing the transformation of light to dark. @kirstenpp @artmonthsydney

05.01.2022 Open Wednesday 10am - 3pm. 53 diverse sculptures on display by 52 artists from across Australia. Last days - exhibition must close 22 March. Pictured: 2020 Finalist John Forrester Clacks, Head 3, graphite, acrylic, steel, 73 x 30 x 37cm. About the work: I work to express as fully as I can, mind, body, emotions and spirit through the physical act of making, surrendering myself to the process and the medium. The spontaneous frozen marks of my drawings and paintings are set free from the canvas and paper to become freestanding sculptures, where the kinetic energy is transferred to the volume and weight of the three-dimension. @johnforresterclack @artmonthsydney

05.01.2022 Drumroll please! The winner of the @crawfordscasting People’s Choice Prize is Paul Trefry with his sculpture ‘Man in a Cube’. Silicone, epoxy resin, human hair, fibreglass resin, glass, oil paints, acrylic sheet, 60 x 60 x 60cm. Thanks to all the visitors that voted and congratulations Paul! @ptrefry @artmonthsydney

04.01.2022 Drumroll please! The winner of the @crawfordscasting Peoples Choice Prize is Paul Trefry with his sculpture Man in a Cube. Silicone, epoxy resin, human hair, fibreglass resin, glass, oil paints, acrylic sheet, 60 x 60 x 60cm. Thanks to all the visitors that voted and congratulations Paul! @ptrefry @artmonthsydney

03.01.2022 We are open! Come say hello and enjoy some art. Open today until 5pm and tomorrow 10am - 5pm. Pictured: 2020 Finalist Nuha Saads Ornamental Fancies I, acrylic on turned pine posts, plywood, 155 x 19 x 19cm & 125 x 19 x 19cm (2 posts). About the work: The artwork Ornamental Fancies I, continues my exploration of the decorative and the architectural. The sculpture consists of two column forms that have been cut from a single wooden post. The columns are painted in a complementary colour palette of blues and greens, magenta and oranges. The sculptures can be seen as two figures, colourful and optimistic, poised regal confidantes, sharing stories and secrets and a joke or two. @nuhasaad1 @artmonthsydney

02.01.2022 2020 Finalist Carolyn V Watson’s ‘Newlands’. Epoxy clay, taxidermy foam form, spring steel rods, bees wax, ink, pastel primer, 97 x 84 x 44cm. About the work: Watson’s intuitive sculptural process centres on the balance between the addition of handmade elements and the slow, physical change that the original material undergoes. Appearing strange and otherworldly, ‘Newlands’, projects a familial bond. The simple act of protecting the other, heightens the compositional interaction and compassion between these two forms. @carolynvwatson @artmonthsydney

02.01.2022 2020 Finalist Stephen Birds Man with crossed arms. Glazed earthenware, enamel and epoxy, 102 x 28 x 26cm. About the work: Man with crossed arms is one of the larger figures from my recent installation Continent of Exiles. A slightly deranged looking young man with the glazed expression of love in his eyes, and arms that cradle the remnants of a disturbing past. @stephen_bird_artist @olsen_gallery @artmonthsydney

02.01.2022 2020 Finalist Vanessa Leungs Earthling; Australia, Earth; Late Anthropocene. Ceramic, 15 x 25 x 17cm. About the work: I imagine what sentient beings will find on Earth, millions of years after were gone. Will they be curious about our once thriving lives on this beautiful planet? This scorched torso brings to mind how we are driving towards our own extinction on a burning planet. @wabisabiwarabi @artmonthsydney

02.01.2022 Exhibition open today and tomorrow 10am - 5pm. Closes Sunday! Pictured: 2020 Finalist Owen Leongs Guardian Head (Jing), Hydrostone, bronze, rose quartz crystal points, steel, 36 x 20 x 28cm (head), 110 x 30cm (stand). About the work: Owen Leongs work explores selfhood through cycles of regeneration and decay. He uses personal mythologies to describe creation and obliteration of the self through casting, destroying, assembling and recasting. Guardian Head (Jing) is an upside-down cast of the artists head. It is an inversion of culture, a way of looking within oneself to find a new perspective. @owen_leong @arterealgallery @artmonthsydney