Archibald Prize winner for 2013 is Hugo by Del Kathryn Barton. It's a watercolor, gouache and acrylic painting on canvas of the Australian actor Hugo Weaving. It's a large painting sized, 200cm x 180cm. The painting is a portrait of Weaving holding a cat with a weeping lilli pilli and a intricate and colorful background. Weavings facial expressions seem serious but natural and he gazes off to his right. Barton painted the portrait in her studio over 5 months and 4 sittings in 2013.
Barton painted Weavings facial expression, which is serious but natural, gazing off to his right. Barton has painted Weaving holding a kind of generic wildcat that represents different facets of Weavings personality. The wildcat has leopard markings on his coat and claws digging into weavings forearm. Barton has painted leaves on Weavings chest described by Barton as "almost like an armor of life". The colors are both light and dark versions of green, blur, white, grey, orange, yellow, pink, brown, black and red. The palettes of colors are used from nature. The juxtaposition of the dark background and the light foreground makes Weaving stand out and suggests Weavings connection with nature. Barton has painted many symbolic features within this painting. Suggesting Weavings is an interesting, creative person with deep respect for nature. It appears that Weaving is in a forest and it look like this because of the background colors and the weeping lilli …show more content…
It was hung in the New South Wales art gallery as part of the Archibald Prize 2013 exhibition and followed by an exhibition tour. Barton normally paints the female form so painting Weaving was a different experience. Barton loves movies and watches 4-5 movies a week and Weaving is one of Barton's favorite Australian actors and she admires him both as an actor and an artist. Barton states that her approach to portraiture is to sit down and have a long convocation with her
Barton painted Weavings facial expression, which is serious but natural, gazing off to his right. Barton has painted Weaving holding a kind of generic wildcat that represents different facets of Weavings personality. The wildcat has leopard markings on his coat and claws digging into weavings forearm. Barton has painted leaves on Weavings chest described by Barton as "almost like an armor of life". The colors are both light and dark versions of green, blur, white, grey, orange, yellow, pink, brown, black and red. The palettes of colors are used from nature. The juxtaposition of the dark background and the light foreground makes Weaving stand out and suggests Weavings connection with nature. Barton has painted many symbolic features within this painting. Suggesting Weavings is an interesting, creative person with deep respect for nature. It appears that Weaving is in a forest and it look like this because of the background colors and the weeping lilli …show more content…
It was hung in the New South Wales art gallery as part of the Archibald Prize 2013 exhibition and followed by an exhibition tour. Barton normally paints the female form so painting Weaving was a different experience. Barton loves movies and watches 4-5 movies a week and Weaving is one of Barton's favorite Australian actors and she admires him both as an actor and an artist. Barton states that her approach to portraiture is to sit down and have a long convocation with her