Girra: Fraser Coast National Art Prize is an initiative of the Hervey Bay Regional Gallery and Fraser Coast Regional Council that seeks to explore our reciprocal, inextricable relationship with the environment through contemporary art.
Girra was borne out of the enduring social and cultural importance of the natural environment in the Fraser Coast region, encompassing land, sea and sky. Home of the Butchulla people, the region’s unique natural features include the world’s largest sand island K’Gari and its surrounding waters, recognised as the world’s first Whale Heritage Site.
Girra: Fraser Coast National Art Prize invites entries from artists working in any visual art medium from across Australia, offering a $25,000 major acquisitive prize. Entrants are invited to submit works that demonstrate a conceptual engagement with the intersection of people, place and the environment. Entries are encouraged from contemporary artists working in any visual art form, including but not limited to painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, installation, performance, and video.
Entries for the inaugural prize open from 1 May 2023 and close 21 June 2023. The Major Prize winner will be awarded a $25,000 acquisitive prize and their work will become a significant early acquisition for the newly focused art collection of the Fraser Coast.
The finalists’ exhibition, held at the Hervey Bay Regional Gallery 23 September to 12 November 2023, will form a compelling story of our nation’s relationship to the environment told through diverse perspectives and aesthetic approaches.
