Gladstone Park Secondary College art teacher Luke Sinclair plans to drive to New South Wales to hand deliver his submission for the 2023 Archibald Art Prize.
The prestigious prize is awarded annually to the best portrait by an Australian artist with the winner taking home $100,000.
Mr Sinclair said he has no expectation of winning, instead his motivations for entering the competition stem from the classroom.
“I want the students to see that I’m doing something with my skills and not just teaching art, but practising it too,” he said.
“I’m doing this because I want to give them a little bit of a kick and encourage the idea that this is possible and they can do these things too.”
Mr Sinclair pays homage to his teaching identity throughout the self-portrait, with the initials of both his own former teachers and current Year 12 art students running along the spine of the painting’s frame.
“A lot of people study art with the intention of keeping it as their own sort of personal world – but I like sharing it, that’s the whole point of this painting,” said Mr Sinclair.
“I think teaching art is the more genuine way to be an artist, because you’re actually giving, not taking.
“I want to watch students have that moment of understanding that they can actually do something that might be worth pursuing in the future.
“It’s all about gifting it on.”
Hannah Hammoud
