Emerging and established local artists are set to showcase their talents and increase their public profile at one of the region’s longest-running arts festivals.
Entries are open for the 42nd Immanuel Arts Festival, to be held at Immanuel Lutheran College at Buderim from May 25 to 28.
Artists, including students, will showcase their skills at the event. This year’s feature artists are painters Teresa Mundt, Beatrice Prost and wearable art artist Maggie Wretham.
Convenor Lauren Nielsen expected the festival to be popular again.
“Last year, the festival attracted around 300 artists and nearly $50,000 worth of artwork was sold,” she said.
“Artists can enter a range of categories including painting, printmaking, drawing, mixed media, sculpture, photography and wearable and creative arts such as ceramic.”
Buderim artist Teresa Mundt specialises in abstract acrylic artwork, mixed media and kiln-fired enamel jewellery.
She believes colour is a simple but powerful device that excites, energises, invigorates, soothes, restores and inspires, and her jewellery was designed with similar objectives in mind.
“Jewellery is art for our bodies,” she said. “The wonderful thing about it, unlike the art we hang on our walls, is that we can adorn ourselves with it and exhibit it for all the world to see.
“Jewellery is an art form that helps us to tell the world who we are.
French-born geophysicist turned artist Beatrice Prost left behind a successful engineering career to paint and carve topographies in a non-representational way.
Her extensive use of dots, lines and geometric patterns harness the organic powers of natural life.
“I aim to create surfaces that capture the essence of reefs and coral forms and do this in a way that shows the essence of the primeval life force itself,” she said.
Australian Wearable Art Festival entrant and 2023 artist in residence Maggie Wretham has promoted the benefits of up-cycling and caring for the environment for many years.
In her art, Maggie has covered Steampunk to Barbie and her creativity always captured attention.
The cost of entering the festival is $15 for one piece and $30 for up to three pieces.
Size restrictions apply to all entries and all artwork exhibited is on sale for the duration of the festival.
With thousands of dollars in cash and prizes, major awards include Outstanding Work of Festival with $1000 in prize money and the ever-popular People’s Choice Award with $500 in prize money.
The 2023 Immanuel Arts Festival is presented by Immanuel Lutheran College and is sponsored by Mix FM, My Weekly Preview and The Inkspot Printers.
Entries opened are now open at Immanuel Arts Festival and close on April 24.
