Kingston’s OptiKA 2019 winners announced and on show
The winners of Kingston Arts’ popular photographic competition OptiKA have been announced and the winning entries are now being exhibited at Shirley Burke Theatre in Parkdale before moving to DFO Moorabbin in March.
Now in its eleventh year, OptiKA invites photographers and video makers to capture images and video of Kingston in response to a creative theme. This year artists were invited to respond to the multi-layered theme of ‘Time’.
Throughout the exhibition the community is being encouraged to vote for the People’s Choice Award. The winner will receive $1000 sponsored by DFO Moorabbin.
OptiKA 2019’s winning entries are being exhibited at Shirley Burke until Monday January 20 and will then move to DFO Moorabbin from Monday 30 March until Monday 13 April.
Kingston Mayor Georgina Oxley said the photography competition was a thought-provoking survey of Kingston’s intimate and epic landscapes which encourages creativity from the community.
“In the era of mobile phones, photography is an increasingly accessible and inclusive medium that Kingston Council is proud to showcase, and we are excited by the boldness and diversity captured by all those who entered this year,” Cr Oxley said.
“OptiKA is also an important way for Council to support the development of our local artists and the exhibition is a wonderful opportunity for emerging and established artists to display their work to the community.”
The winners of the OptiKA 2019 awards are:
- Best Photography Award – Wei Fu, Recall, Moorabbin Aviation Museum, 2019 (awarded $4000 sponsored by DFO Moorabbin)
- Highly Commended Best Photograph Award – Nathan Giles, Mulkarra Drive, Edithvale, 2019 (awarded $250 sponsored by the City of Kingston)
- Portrait Award – Matt Harvey, Of Another Time, Edithvale Wetlands, 2019 (awarded $1000 sponsored by City of Kingston)
- Highly Commended Portrait Award – Rebecca Marshall, When I Grow Up, 2019 (awarded $250 sponsored by the City of Kingston)
This year’s Curatorial Committee members included Shane Hulbert, Associate Dean Photography at RMIT, Dr Debbie Symons, interdisciplinary artist and Monash University lecturer, and digital media artist, Yandell Walton.
