Brisbane, 3 October 2014: Queensland-based artist Chris Bennie was last night named the winner of the $10,000 Clayton Utz Art Award for 2014.
Mr Bennie's winning work - Sex Art and the Dow Jones - was chosen from 43 finalists, selected from over 200 entries.
Award judge and 2013 Clayton Utz [LAUNCH] Art Award winner Sebastian Di Mauro described the work as "witty, evocative and provocative, playful, romantic and banal all at the same time".
"The photograph compilation of an earthquake disaster in Kobe, Japan in 1995 - also known as the Great Hanshin earthquake - with the text image is a wonderfully metaphoric work, which sensitively and intelligently reinterprets a socially significant event," said Mr Di Mauro.
Mr Di Mauro highly commended Damien O'Mara for his work River Suit 5, which he described as a "beautiful and enigmatic image, which is poetic and metaphoric".
Presenting the award to Mr Bennie, Mr Di Mauro also thanked and acknowledged Clayton Utz for their continued support of Queensland artists. "This annual award is very important event in the calendar of arts prizes in Queensland and it continues to attract a very high calibre of practitioner," he said.
All finalists' artworks are available for purchase and will be on display at Clayton Utz's Brisbane offices in Riparian Plaza until 25 September 2015.
The Clayton Utz Art Award (previously the LAUNCH Art Award) is open to Queensland-based artists or artists with a strong connection to the state.
Clayton Utz would like to acknowledge and thank Lethbridge Gallery for their continued support in co-ordinating and managing the Award.