I’m thrilled to have my painting ‘Simon Laherty, Actor, Back to Back Theatre’ selected for the Salon des Refusés 2016 and to have attended the opening last night at the National Trust S.H. Ervin Gallery in Sydney. The emotion I felt when I saw the crowd gathered outside this beautiful gallery, with one of my paintings inside, is something I’ll never forget. It’s an honour to have my painting of Simon hanging with the works of so many artists I’ve long admired.
From the S.H. Ervin Gallery website:
“Each year the Salon selection panel goes behind the scenes of the judging process for the Archibald and Wynne Prizes, to select an ‘alternative’ exhibition from the many works not chosen as finalists for the official exhibitions. They viewed the unselected works from the 830 Archibald Prize and 710 Wynne Prize entries at the Art Gallery of New South Wales to select the 64 works for this alternative exhibition.
The Salon des Refusés exhibition at the S.H. Ervin Gallery has established an excellent reputation that rivals the selections of the ‘official’ exhibition with works which examine contemporary art practices, different approaches to portraiture and responses to the landscape.”
I was punching the air Rocky-style when I received the call I’d been selected!
The Salon des Refusés exhibition is at the S.H. Ervin Gallery, 2 Watson Rd, Millers Point on Observatory Hill, The Rocks in Sydney, from 16 July to 18 September, then travels to the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery, Dunns Rd, Melbourne, from 25 September until 22 November.
The Back to Back Theatre Portraits
