SUCCESSFUL Oberon artist and sculptor Harrie Fasher, who will exhibit in the upcoming Sculpture By The Sea at Bondi, has been awarded a scholarship of $30,000.
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Ms Fasher and two other artists, sculptors Ron Robertson-Swann and Dr Julie Gough, were all awarded a scholarship to further their artistic development.
The scholarships are awarded as part of the Helen Lempriere Bequest, a charitable trust managed by Perpetual with the purpose of providing scholarships for the applied arts and crafts. The bequest was designed to advance individual artists’ careers by enabling them to travel and study.
Ms Fasher produces large-scale steel sculptures that have been described as embodying tension and movement, utilising both abstraction and figurative form, predominantly the horse, to convey her message.
She has work in public and private collections within Australia and internationally. A seminal sculpture she created is central to the National Museum of Australia’s Spirited: Horse In Australia exhibition.
“I am honoured to receive the Helen Lempriere Scholarship,” Ms Fasher said. “It gives me an opportunity to travel, study and pursue significant developments in my artistic career.
"My sculptures are costly to produce, so any assistance is well-received. I have the support from Allan Wilding from Metaland Bathurst.
"He has supplied me with a lot of material for my sculptures as well as transport to locate my art to Bondi.
"This year my project for Sculptures By The Sea is eight life-sized horses in full flight inspired by the Last Charge on the Western Front in France in World War One.
"There were 800 horses in the battle, so one of my sculptures will represent 100 horses.
"As you can imagine, we are working to a strict deadline and I'm indebted for the help from Nicole O'Reagan and the Salmon family for all their assistance.
"Nicole, an artist in her own right, has been working and welding on my sculptures for the past four years; she's fantastic."
The three artists who received scholarships have been described as representing the great strength and diversity of Australian sculpture, bringing three very different works and perspectives to the Sculpture By The Sea exhibition.
Ms Fasher was chosen from 300 Australian sculptors who applied to exhibit in Sculpture By The Sea 2017 by the Art School academics on this year’s curatorial panel.
“Each of these artists has a special place in Australian sculpture. We are delighted the Helen Lempriere Bequest is able to support the next stage of each of their careers,” director David Handley said.
Sculpture By The Sea will run from October 19 to November 5.