Richard Klekociuk - Glover Prize finalist

Wholemeal Landscape, Northern Tasmania
90 x 75cm framed (35" x 29.5"), Prismacolour pencils on Canson Pastel Board
copyright Richard Klekociuk

Richard Klekociuk is an international member of UKCPS who lives in the state of Tasmania in Australia. This year, Richard was one of 43 finalists in the Glover Prize - an art competition which has the biggest prize for landscape art in Australia.

The prestigious Glover Prize is the richest landscape prize in Australia. It is awarded each year for the best new (previously unexhibited and less than a year old) painting depicting the Tasmanian landscape. The winner receives $30,000 and a maquette of John Glover
John Glover Prize website

This is the artist's statement which Richard had to submit with his entry, Wholemeal Landscape, Northern Tasmania.

This drawing celebrates the strong bond between bread and the landscape.

Bread is made from grain (and water), which in this case, comes from the fertile areas of Northern Tasmania.

Bread as an object has strong landscape qualities. Its colour, structure and texture, is reminiscent of its agricultural origin and landscape surrounds.

Ancient Egyptians considered bread the “staff of life”.

In Christianity bread symbolises the body of Christ.

We consider bread and water to be the most basic necessities of our diet.

Despite modernisation, the pressures on farming and our environment, we are still able to grow our own food on rich, fertile land.

Tasmania is indeed a special place.

Glover Prize 2009 By artkleko

Richard is a retired art teacher whose artwork has always focused on the Australian landscape. At present he specialises in symbolist landscapes in coloured pencils. You can see more of his work - landscapes and symbolist landscapes - on his website and you can read more about him in his member gallery on the UKCPS website or in his curriculum vitae page on his own website.

Richard's solo exhibition in Launceston, Tasmania opens on April 4 titled "Bread". He intends to post each of 13 drawings (Baker's dozen) on his blog, one each day starting on April 5.

Note: For UK readers AUS$30,000 translates to around £14,250.

Links:

• The Glover Prize
  
• Richard's blog Artkleko’s Weblog (see side column re. member's blogs)
  
• Richard's website artleko - the artwork of Richard Klekociuk