John Fries Award entries now open

Applications for the 9th annual John Fries Award are now open.

Consuelo Cavaniglia, interdisciplinary artist, academic and independent curator, continues in her role as Guest Curator and Judge for a second year.

She is joined on the judging panel by Sophia Kouyoumdjian, coordinator at Parramatta Artists Studios; Dr Mikala Tai, director of 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art; Shannon Te Ao, Walters Prize-winning artist based in Wellington, New Zealand; and Kath Fries, Sydney-based artist, Chair of the Award and daughter of the prize's namesake, John Fries.

"The John Fries Award attracts an exciting cross-section of contemporary early career artists from across Australia and New Zealand and presents a great opportunity for [them] to access highly regarded professionals through the judging process," Ms Cavaniglia says.

"I'm thrilled to welcome [the judges] to the judging panel. They are an esteemed group of professionals who bring extensive knowledge of contemporary art and diversity of experience to the prize."

The non-acquisitive award has established itself as one of the most highly coveted awards for early career artists in Australia and New Zealand. Previous winners include Kuba Dorabialski, Eric Demetriou, Ben Ward, Bridie Lunney, Jess Olivieri and Hayley Forward, Jacob Leary, Sanne Mestrom and Hannah Bertram.

This year's finalists will present work in an exhibition at UNSW Galleries (the award's presenting partner for the fifth consecutive year) from 29 September to 3 November. The winning work will receive $10,000.

The award was established in 2010 by the Fries family in memory of former Viscopy director and honorary treasurer, John Fries, who made a remarkable contribution to the life and success of the organisation. After a successful five-year partnership agreement, Viscopy merged with Copyright Agency on 30 November 2017.

The Call for Entries closes on Monday, 19 February 2018. To enter, go to: www.johnfriesaward.com/enter

About the Copyright Agency:

The Copyright Agency is an Australian not-for-profit organisation that represents over 40,000 members "“ writers, publishers, surveyors, artists and more. We collectively license their copyright, so your company can legally reuse content created by others, and be confident that creators are being compensated fairly for their work. Licensing revenue is redistributed to our members, ensuring the Australian creative economy remains strong. Visit us at: www.copyright.com.au