Betty Collier Sculpture

Ballarat sculptor wins international award

BALLARAT sculptor Betty Collier has been making waves internationally with her work, and was recently awarded a medal for her exhibition at the Florence Biennale in Italy. The Florence Biennale brings together artists working in a range of different media together from countries around the world every two years. An international jury of judges award first to fifth place prizes in several categories including photography, film, installation, sculpture, painting and drawing from a field of more than 530 participants.

Ms Collier's award marks the first time an Australian has taken out one of the sculpture placings. Australian artists have previously placed in the installation and painting sections.

Ms Collier, who teaches at the SMB art school, won the fifth place prize with her sculpture entitled Beyond the Bend, which was carved from a piece of Pilbara jade over a nine month period.

She also entered a piece made of zebra stone from Kununurra in Western Australia.

Ms Collier said she deliberately used stones which were unique to Australia to give her works a more unique feel.

She said she was ecstatic to have won the award.

"I loved every minute of it," Ms Collier said.

"How many artists in Australia ever get to look at the whole world of art in one place? It was just mind boggling to see all of the artwork there.

"Talking to people and meeting all the other artists there was interesting, and they were all very friendly.

"I came back with a few books that other artists had written and made a few friends over there."

Ms Collier said she had struggled to gain financial backing for her exhibition at a national, state or local level, because people thought she was too old and "not good enough" to compete with the international artists at the event.

She said monetary constraints meant she only entered two pieces of work into the exhibition, rather than the three allowed under competition rules.

Ms Collier said she had remained focused however, and claimed the award had validated her hard work.

"People seem to think there's a cut off date for your creativity," she said.

"As an artist, there isn't any cutoff date.

"You just keep working until you're either physically or mentally unable to work anymore."

Ms Collier has already been invited to enter her work in the 2013 biennale, and said she hoped for more financial support next time.

"One of the Brisbane artists received $10,000 from the Queensland government (to enter the exhibition)," she said.

"I guess it just depends which state you live in whether you can get any financial support or not.

"Hopefully next time I will be able to get some people to back me and help me out with the money."