HIDDEN FACES
The 2020 Victorian Salon des Refusés
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Cat #34 Lisa Wang
BOB Watercolour on Canvas 110 cm h x 80 cm w NFS Artist’s Statement Robert Wade (OAM) is one of our most respected artists.His name is synonymous with watercolour worldwide. In Australia he is known as The Godfather of Australian watercolour, and in the United States he has been dubbed “The World Ambassador of Watercolour”. His friends simply call him “Bob”. He is turning ninety in July this year, and I thought a portrait painting would make a good birthday present. Originally I was going to use oils, as I have been using that medium much longer than watercolour. However, I then decided that it’s probably much more appropriate to paint him in watercolour, in order to pay tribute to a great watercolour master. I chose canvas instead of the traditional watercolour paper, so this was a totally new experiment for me, and I’m pleased I went in that direction. I experimented with four different types of canvas, two of them didn’t work, but the other two produced very interesting results. This experiment has taught me to understand this medium in better ways. Some studies came out quite nicely, so I have decided to frame them together as a collection. Golf and Art are Bob’s life. I hope through these paintings people can feel his passion and celebrate the ninety years together. This portrait was submitted for the Portia Geach Portrait Prize. click on artwork to enlarge |