And the winner is …

*Pic: Albatross Island, 2015, by Matthew Newton, http://www.matthewnewton.com.au/

Tara James and Amelia Mollett are the National Portrait Gallery’s resident Art Handlers. Together, ‘Tamelia’ as they are affectionately known, are responsible for the safe movement of every portrait in the Gallery’s collection along with installation, display and assisting with touring exhibitions. They have worked on the National Photographic Portrait Prize for many years and always enjoy inspecting the finalists’ portraits as they arrive.

This year, thanks to the support of our friends at International Art Services, we are awarding an Art Handlers’ Award of $1000 and free return transport for the artwork to the portrait that Tara and Amelia find the most striking.

But first they had to narrow it down to just one…

And the winner is: On Albatross Island, 2015 by Matthew Newton

“We were drawn to the mimicry of the human/bird body shapes & the repeated patterns of limbs echoing wings & the crouched protectiveness of both bodies. Also the profile repetition of both bowed heads highlighted by a moody skyline & the natural texture of the rocks. We loved the subtle reference to our changing awareness of environmental issues & interconnectedness of humans, animal & nature.”

• Albatross Island is located off the north-western tip of Tasmania. It is home to 5,200 pairs of Shy Albatross, who are endemic to Tasmania. The Tasmanian government has maintained a long term monitoring program on the island for over thirty years. The program is currently overseen by marine biologist Dr Rachael Alderman, who has been visiting the island throughout the year for over a decade. After a day of banding and fitting miniature satellite tracking devices, her hands and forearms are bitten and bleeding. These are wounds of love; they mark an engaged scientist’s deep affection for an extraordinary bird.