NSW artist Rew Hanks has taken the coveted first prize in this year’s Fremantle Arts Centre Print Award with the work Gone Fishing East of Faskrudfjordur. He wins $16,000 in prize money and the print will be acquired by the City of Fremantle Art Collection.
This year’s judging panel – Lee Kinsella (WA), Anne Ryan (NSW), Mark Stewart (WA) admired the work and said, “Gone Fishing East of Faskrudfjordur stood out for its lyrical rendering of a vast Nordic landscape. This remote and beautiful part of the world seems untouched by modern life. However, on closer inspection tiny human figures infiltrate the scene, reminding us of the fragility of nature and the impact of humanity on the environment. The energy of nature is effectively rendered in the layers of water, land, cloud and sky. The print is extraordinarily sophisticated and well executed, on an ambitious scale that sustains its power over the expanse of the image.”
About the Artist
Rew Hanks has held 27 solo exhibitions and over 178 group exhibitions in Australia and internationally. Nationally he has been awarded 28 print prizes and 12 international print prizes. His works are held in the Australian National Gallery and most state and regional galleries throughout Australia and twelve international galleries/museums. In 1999 he was awarded a Master of Fine Arts from the University of NSW in Sydney and a Print Fellow from the Tamarind Institute at the University of New Mexico in America in 1991.
Rew Hanks, Gone Fishing East of Faskrudfjordur, 2018, linocut, 70 × 200cm
About the Work
While visiting Iceland for three months in early 2017 Hanks was overwhelmed by its diverse landscape. At the end of winter the rugged mountain ranges in Southern Iceland were gently dusted with snow contrasting dramatically against the black volcanic rocks. The contrasting blacks and whites were perfect imagery demanding to be transposed into linocuts. However while examining photographs of this majestic scene he noticed a minute solitary figure in the foreground standing at the waters edge fishing alone and close by was a small boat full of fisherman. Their presence was a shattering reminder of the four huge aluminium smelters already built on this island and the six more planned for the highlands. Even this uniquely beautiful isolated country is seriously under threat.
