May 23, 2024
Portrait brings activist to life
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Oakura-based artist Maryanne Shearman has won the 2024 Adam Portraiture Award for her painting of Taranaki climate activist Tuhi-Ao Bailey.
This year’s award, which drew a record breaking 451 entries and 37 finalists, comes with a $20,000 cash prize.
Judges Felicity Milburn and Karl Maughan says the painting displayed not just exceptional realism but also gives a strong sense of Bailey’s character and life.
Shearman, who moved to Taranaki in 2014 with her young family, says she tries to paint depictions of biculturalism, hope, and sustainability, and the portrait of the ecologist and community organiser was her most politically charged piece to date.
Bailey is depicted standing in the Parihaka food-forest, next to the awa Waitotoroa. Ko ia te whenua, ko te whenua ko ia.
The finalists are on display at the New Zealand Portrait Gallery in Wellington.