Winner Maintains Archibald's Reputation For Controversy

The Advertiser (Adelaide, Australia)

March 18, 2000

Winner Maintains Archibald's Reputation For Controversy;

Painter's dash of inspiration hits the spot. (News)

Byline: DOUG CONWAY in Sydney

THE winner of Australia's top portrait prize looks like it was dashed off in 39 seconds.

That, at least, is the view of New South Wales Art Gallery director Edmund Capon about Adam Cullen's image of actor David Wenham, better known as Diver Dan in the ABC TV series Seachange.

But it does not mean he doesn't like the painting.

He does, as he was at pains to explain after the $35,000 prize was awarded to a Sydney artist who said he could do with the money.

``The lyric is in capturing an individual, the flourish of a person,'' Mr Capon said.

``As they say, it's five minutes in the making, five years in the thinking.

``It's a very poignant, profound and instantaneous statement. It's terrific. ``I do think a lot of the public will look at it and say, `I think my kiddy-wink did that the other day'. But they would be missing its insight and maturity, knowing how and where to place the marks.''

The painting actually took about four hours to put on canvas apart from the year the artist spent thinking and talking about it.

``I stared at the work for a long time,'' said Cullen, 34, whose fourth Archibald entry went one better than his runner-up effort last year a portrait of another actor, his cousin Max Cullen.

The subject couldn't be happier.

``The greatest thing about it is that I can look at it and say, `Well, that's me','' Wenham said.

``It's much better than any photograph I've had taken of me.

``It reveals facets of my personality. I can certainly see a quiet intensity.''

Cullen calls Wenham the best actor of his generation. Cullen thanked the judges, his girlfriend and his dog Growler, a kelpie-collie cross who always sits at the door of his studio.

The publicity surrounding the Archibald Prize will do no harm at all to the young painter, who admitted: ``I could really do with the money. It's hard to support yourself as an artist.''

The judges also highly commended the works of Jenny Sages (Each morning when I wake up I put on my mother's face ) and Garry Shead (Sasha Grishin ).

The Wynne Prize for the best landscape or figure sculpture winner was John Dahlsen (Thong totems ), the Sulman Prize for subject, genre or mural painting went to John Peart (Snailsake ) and the Dobell prize for drawing or draughting was awarded to Nick Mourtzakis (untitled study ).