Melbourne-based artist Xanthe Dobbie was named as the winner of the prestigious $10,000 Incinerator Art Award at Incinerator Gallery on Friday night.
From an initial field of more than 250 entries from all over Australia, Xanthe’s work The Long Now, with music by Jorde Heys, was declared the standout among the 28 shortlisted artworks.
Presented at the exhibition’s opening at the City of Moonee Valley’s flagship gallery in Aberfeldie, the award was judged by art professionals Andrew Tetzlaff, Jessica Clark and Nathan Beard.
In announcing Xanthe the award winner, the judges said collectively of the artwork, “the relevance and timeliness of The Long Now captures a convergence of pop and game culture, social media, and the everyday vernacular of the internet.”
“Through a plurality of historical narrative and contemporary visual languages, it masterfully highlights video as a media that can be both accessible and stylistic,” they said.
“Xanthe humorously draws upon a range of topics including the relevance of monuments, the patriarchy, and the vast disparity of power and influence. The artwork is speculative, contemporary myth-making for a future that is not guaranteed. This provokes feelings of anxiety, outrage, and hopefully resistance.”
Exhibition details
Incinerator Gallery, 180 Holmes Road, Aberfeldie, 3040
Exhibition dates: Saturday, 7 October – Sunday,19 November 2023