Distinguished landscape painter Tim Storrier, winner of the 2012 Archibald Prize, is making history as the first Archibald Prize winner to exhibit at Sculpture by the Sea. His sculptural work, titled "The Splotcher," debuts along Sydney's Bondi coastline as part of the annual outdoor sculpture exhibition.
The sculpture depicts a wandering fool carrying a paint bucket in one hand and a paintbrush tipped with white paint in the other, resembling a torch lighting the way forward. Crowning the figure's head is a red dunce hat reminiscent of those used during Mao's revolutionary China to humiliate intellectuals, inscribed with the word "idiot." The work continues in the tradition of Storrier's "The Histrionic Wayfarer," which earned him the prestigious Archibald Prize over a decade ago.
Storrier's decision to participate in Sculpture by the Sea stems from his growing disillusionment with what he perceives as the increasingly politicized direction of government-funded contemporary art. "I've ceased looking at a lot of contemporary art because I'm fed up to the back teeth of the hectoring nature of their political messages," Storrier explained. "They don't know the difference between propaganda and fine art. If you are talking about gender and race issues, it's certainly not subtle. They can keep their disgraceful political messages, and I'm not the only one who thinks so."
The artist believes that contemporary art has lost its way, focusing more on political messaging than aesthetic value. He argues that the identity of the artist is being given undue weight in government-funded art decisions, often at the expense of quality and artistic merit. "People don't appear to want to go to a lot of state-funded art," Storrier observed. "It's not about the look of an object any more, it's about the political message and the suitability of the artist who made it; it's a type of Marxism."
Storrier's sculptured fool joins 85 other works displayed along the two-kilometer outdoor sculpture walk from Bondi to Tamarama. In its 29th year, the exhibition nearly faced cancellation due to a $200,000 funding shortfall, which was resolved at the last minute when NRMA stepped in as a sponsor. The event has also faced logistical challenges, with eight of nine works from participating Japanese artists stranded overseas due to the impact of Typhoon Matmo, which recently devastated parts of China and Hong Kong.
Among the other notable works this year, Justin Morrissey has created a bronze sculpture of a backyard shell pool, responding to consumer culture's absurdity and humanity's desire to control nature. NSW artist Graeme Pattison has installed an interactive red telephone box where visitors can listen to recorded messages, while Queensland's Andrew Cullen has crafted a giant monitor lizard from recycled timber. Victoria's Adnan Dogan spent thousands of hours welding "Colossus," a steel crocodile with a menacing grimace.
Walcha sculptor James Rogers achieved a significant milestone by winning the major $70,000 Aqualand Sculpture Award for his work "Sirens Song." This victory came after 21 attempts, having previously exhibited at Bondi 20 times, including in the very first exhibition in 1997. Rogers is well-known for personally towing his sculptures from regional New South Wales to Bondi in a car trailer.
Storrier stands among the most accomplished artists participating in the show. The National Art School graduate made history by winning the 1968 Sulman Prize at age 19, becoming the youngest artist ever to receive the prestigious award, and won it again in 1984. His accolades continued with the 2014 Archibald Packing Room Prize for a portrait of his late friend Barry Humphries as Sir Les Patterson, and the 2017 Doug Moran National Portrait Prize worth $100,000 for his portrait of artist Mclean Edwards.
Sculpture by the Sea founder David Handley welcomed Storrier's participation, noting the significance of having the first Archibald Prize winner join the outdoor exhibition. The annual show attracts an impressive audience, expecting to draw 450,000 visitors over 18 days. "They get a huge walk past," Storrier noted, "much bigger than the Archibald Prize – it's pretty extraordinary. That tells you that the public like it and relate to it and that's a very good thing in my opinion because contemporary art has a dreadful history of producing art that mystifies and disgusts the public."
Unlike his earlier monochromatic sculptural works, "The Splotcher" is rendered in full color, making the figure appear more human than his previous monotone predecessors. When asked whether the piece represents self-mockery, Storrier responded philosophically: "Every artist with a decent brain does that every day. It's intended to be insolent, put it that way."
The exhibition runs until November 3, offering visitors the opportunity to experience Storrier's bold artistic statement alongside dozens of other works set against the dramatic backdrop of Sydney's iconic coastline. His participation represents not just a personal artistic evolution, but a broader commentary on the current state of contemporary art and its relationship with both funding bodies and the general public.
