Acclaimed Bibbenluke artist Lucy Culliton is again a finalist in the Archibald Prize – the fifth time she has made the prestigious shortlist.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
For her 2017 entry, Ms Culliton painted a portrait of Steve Peters, the legendary (retiring) head of the packing room at the NSW Art Gallery.
As well as her Archibald entry this year, she is also a finalist in the Wynne Prize, which is awarded to the best landscape painting of Australian scenery, for her painting entitled “Love lies bleeding”.
The painting is of a part of Ms Culliton’s garden at Bibbenluke that will be open to the public next year for the Nimmitabel Open Garden Day.
“I love my garden,” Ms Culliton said. “Living on a property with a few acres means when I need to expand my garden I just move a fence.
“The bed I have painted was a paddock that I have planted trees in that will one day be spectacular in front of the rocks and I have also planted love lies bleeding, orange button chrysanthemums and dahlias.
“I’m hoping that the painting depicts how the garden will look for next year’s Nimmitabel Open Garden Day,” she said.
The announcement of winners in the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes is at noon on Friday, but Ms Culliton said that she didn’t expect to win.
“I hate competitions, they rattle my nerves, I even had to work up courage to enter my dahlias in last years [Bombala] show,” she said.
Ms Culliton has been a finalist in the Archibald Prize five times. She has been a finalist in the Sulman prize for subject painting three times and this is the fourth time she has been a finalist in the Wynne Prize.
Born in Sydney in 1966, Ms Culliton graduated the National Art School in Sydney. She has work hanging in the National Gallery of Australia, the Art Gallery of NSW, Macquarie Bank and Parliament House Collection.
She has also won the 2006 Portia Geach Memorial Award.
Ms Culliton is a prolific artist who works hard in her studio most days.
“I get up early in the morning with my partner Jamie who starts early. After he has gone I prepare all the animal feed, then I feed all the animals and then I feed me and by 9am I start working down in the studio.
“I work until late afternoon, then I feed all the animals again and perhaps do some gardening,” she said.
Her love of animals is great. She owns eight horses, three cows, 62 sheep, “a bunch of assorted poultry”, four emu that were a birthday present from Jamie, several cockatoos, five greyhounds and a retired kelpie cross sheep dog.
“Most of my animals arrive in my care after someone asks me if I could take them.”
View all the Archibald Portrait Prize finalists for 2017 here. The finalists in the 2017 Wynne Prize can be viewed here.
