3 Prizes @ Paddington Art Prize

A new chapter is unfolding for the Paddington Art Prize following its landmark 20th

anniversary in 2024. Founder Marlene Antico OAM has strategically positioned the prize

for sustained growth by entrusting distinct leadership roles to family members: son Chris

Antico as Principal Sponsor overseeing financial operations, daughter Pia Antico as

Head of Operations & Stakeholder Engagement managing all aspects of the three

concurrent prizes, and Izzy Antico leading graphic design.

Today, the Paddington Art Prize has evolved into a comprehensive celebration of

Australian landscape art through three concurrent national competitions: the prestigious

23rd Annual National Acquisitive $30,000 Paddo Painting Prize, the 2nd Annual

National Non-Acquisitive Young Paddo Art Prize, and the newly launched Inaugural

Annual National Non-Acquisitive $10,000 Paddo Sculpture Prize—all inspired by the

unique Australian Landscape.

The prize's expansion began with Izzy's innovative vision to create a platform for young

artists, much like the Young Archie supports emerging portrait painters. This inspired

the 2025 launch of the Young Paddo Art Prize, encouraging A4 paintings on paper from

talented young artists across Australia. The inaugural competition attracted remarkable

entries from four age categories (5-8, 9-12, 13-15, and 16-18 years), culminating in a celebratory Sunday afternoon Prize Presentation that drew over 80 guests to honour 20

Finalists and 8 award winners.

Building on this momentum, the 2026 season introduces the inaugural Sculpture Prize,

championed by Chris Antico. This expansion aims to celebrate the Australian landscape

through three-dimensional artistic expression, diversifying the platform while providing

sculptors with the prestigious recognition previously available only to painters. The

initiative seeks to significantly enhance the prize's national reach and enrich Australia's

cultural landscape across multiple creative mediums.

Together, these prizes represent a powerful intergenerational commitment to artistic

exploration—where the Sculpture Prize celebrates contemporary landscape expression

in new dimensions, while the Young Paddo Prize ensures the ongoing exploration of

Australia's artistic heritage through the fresh perspectives of emerging generations.

Young Paddo Art Prize Entries Close June 28

Paddo Painting Prize; Paddo Sculpture Prize Entries Close August 2

Visit website for access to entry forms

​https://www.paddingtonartprize.com.au/​

All Enquiries email info@paddingtonartprize.com.au

The Winter Art Prize - it's new

The Winter Art Prize 2026, established by North Sydney Community Centre, is the Centre’s first-ever fundraising art competition, created to support and celebrate local creativity while strengthening community connection.

The purpose of the prize is to showcase local artistic talent while also raising funds that directly support the Centre’s programs and community initiatives. Proceeds help sustain a wide range of activities, including creative workshops and classes, youth programs and inclusive opportunities that foster social connection and wellbeing.

Participants will also have the opportunity to have their work judged by Ann Cape, a painter, sculptor and art teacher with over 40 years of experience in the Australian art scene.

This year’s theme, “Things That Bring Us Together,” reflects the Centre’s core mission of building meaningful connections through shared experiences.

Open to Adults and High School students, the prize offers $2,300 and $350 awards respectively.

Registrations close Friday 15 May 2026.

More about the John Leslie Art Prize

The John Leslie Art Prize returns in 2026 for its fourteenth edition, continuing its reputation as one of Australia’s premier prizes for landscape painting. Named after the Gallery’s Patron and founding figure, John Leslie OBE, the $30,000 acquisitive prize is proudly supported by the Gippsland Art Gallery Foundation.

The theme of ‘landscape’ is deliberately broad and open to interpretation—artists are encouraged to take an expansive view of the genre, in keeping with the Gallery’s ongoing focus on the natural environment.

A former Mayor of Sale, John Leslie founded the Gippsland Art Gallery in 1965 and was a tireless advocate and philanthropist for the arts. He established the Prize in 2000 - funding it entirely himself until his death in 2016 at the age of 97. Today, it continues through his philanthropic foundation.

Entries close Friday 17 July, with finalists on show from 5 September to 22 November. Winners will be announced at the official launch on Friday 4 September at 6.00pm, including the main prize and the ‘Best Gippsland Work’ award.

This year’s judges include Louise Tegart (Art Gallery of Ballarat), alongside Simon Gregg and Louisa Waters from Gippsland Art Gallery. Winners will join past recipients such as Peter Gardiner, Greg Wood and Sarah Tomasetti in the Prize’s growing legacy.

Can you use Claude AI to speed up processing applications for your prize?

​

If you're a prize host and processing a lot of prize applications, have a look at Claude Coworker - it might save your staff many hours of work, if it is set up correctly. Here's a handy overview of Coworker on YouTube. It's not free but it can be cost effective.

The same applies if you're an artist and making lots of applications - this new version of Claude may be the personal assistant you need.

And if you're looking for assistance, just let me know.

BTW - did you read about Two Collections?

Did anyone see the recent piece in The Australian featuring the Two Collections website? The featured works are so beautiful that I thought it worth bringing the website to the attention of those who, like me, hadn’t come across it before.

It highlights two significant collections of Indigenous Australian art—those of Steve Martin & Anne Stringfield, and John & Barbara Wilkerson—brought together on a single web platform.
​Two Collections celebrates the history of Australian Indigenous art on canvas or board since its dramatic beginnings circa 1970. Early works are from the Wilkerson collection (1971-1985-ish), and later works are from the Martin/Stringfield collection.*

It also brings to mind another notable American holding, the Kluge-Ruhe collection, which began as a private collection and is now housed at the University of Virginia, comprising over 4,000 works. Perhaps the Two Collections may one day find a similar home in a public institution.

Take a look at the Two Collections website and enjoy these remarkable works:
​https://twocollections.com/​

​
* Courtesy the Two Collections website.
Note: We (Discovery Media) have been publishing the most authoritative biographical database of Australian Indigenous artists (NATSIVAD) since 1996.

Popular Prizes in March

Prizes with free entry for prizes calling now

• Moreton Bay Region Art Prize - closes 11 Apr 2026
• Abbotsleigh Grace Cossington Smith Art Award - closes 14 Apr 2026
• Deakin University Contemporary Small Sculpture Award - closes 5 Jun 2026
• Banksia Art Prize - closes 18 Sep 2026

Prizes Categories for prizes calling now

If you go to 👉 https://members.art-prizes.com/ you can see all the calling prizes for the next 90 days.

Don’t miss your next opportunity - there are around 80 prizes calling over the next 90 days ✨
Stay ahead of the curve with the latest art prize open calls—delivered straight to your inbox.

Subscribe to our free email digest and choose how often you’d like to hear from us: weekly, fortnightly, or monthly:

👉 https://members.art-prizes.com/​

Getting started is easy—just head to www.art-prizes.com and select “More Options” from the menu.

Below is a snapshot of this month’s (April) live listings. It highlights current opportunities at a glance, including open calls across upcoming months, plus key details like prize status, title, category, deadlines, and direct links for more information.

Discover more, apply sooner, and never miss an opportunity again.

And if you click the Menu button, you'll find a huge amount of useful data about prizes, finalists and winners as well.

Sent by www.art-prizes.com

34 Blenheim Street, Balaclava, Melbourne, VIC 3183
​Unsubscribe · Preferences​