Kennedy Prize 2022 Winner
Byron Copland
“Ageing Still Life Diptych"
The painting I made
The one intended duty
Of the flowers young and sprightly
A single tribute to their beauty
Then overlooked on boards they sat
And it’s difficult to say
If I gave them more attention
Would they still have turned this way
As if tempting me to notice
Or to tell me “we’re not done
My colours will forever change
We’ve only just begun”
Oil on wood
Copland
Judges Statement: “Looking through an alternate lens on the brief – it is the antethesis of beauty that captivates. Intimate and thoughtfully composed, this dyptich shows beauty in the mundane. Capturing various stages of decay in order to define beauty.”