100% Fresh! RMIT art and design graduates scoop awards

All five winners for 2017 were RMIT graduates, with four winners from the University's renowned fine art degrees.

Craft Victoria handpicks 12 finalists from more than 30 Victorian vocational and higher education graduate exhibitions.

This year, RMIT dominated the pool with nine finalists selected from the fields of art, fashion and design.

Professor Julian Goddard, Head of the School of Art, said: "It is wonderful to see so many RMIT fine art graduates recognised by their peers and industry.

“The win shows how RMIT’s emerging artists are at the centre of Melbourne’s flourishing creative art scene.

“It’s testament to why RMIT’s School of Art is recognised as a leader in contemporary art practice, and it’s great that so many are going on to undertake postgraduate study with us.”

Michaela Pegum, winner of the Pieces of Eight prize, collected $500 plus a professional development session with Melanie Katsalidis, director and founder of Pieces of Eight.

Pegum studied the Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) (Honours) specialising in gold and silversmithing, and this year commenced her Master of Fine Art by research with RMIT.

“I am interested in the nuances of experiences that connect us to a greater sense of being in the world," she said.

"My current work considers experiences that hover on the thresholds of knowledge and mystery, and how their nuances can be expressed in material form.

“These works emerged out of in-depth phenomenological, poetic and material explorations.

"They seek to honour our perceptually rich experiences in the natural world and give material form to the fluid space of interweaving where we meet it – a space that is both human and other.

“It was wonderful to be asked to take part in Fresh!. Its an exciting exhibition for emerging makers and it was lovely to be sharing the space with so many of my peers from RMIT.

"Winning the Pieces of Eight award was a very thrilling surprise and I’m looking forward to meeting Melanie.”

Bachelor of Fine Art (Honours) graduate Cara Johnson, whose specialisation was also in gold and silversmithing, won the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins Prize.

The prize will result in an exhibition of her work in Sofitel’s exclusive gallery/foyer space, valued at $3000. 

Johnson recently began a Master of Fine Art by research at RMIT. Her practice is concerned with fragility and preciousness in nature, while also addressing human impact on the landscape, and her work Hinterland (survey) responds to these concerns.

“Each of the components that contribute to Hinterland (survey) has a correlation to a point within the environment," Johnson said.

"Observed details, qualities and histories have been referenced in the forms and rhythms of making.

“I see these objects as having become intertwined with the land when I placed and left them in the environment that they reference.

"Over time, rust and rot began to creep in and the weather contorted and shifted the materials, removing them from my hand and returning them to nature.”

Craft Victoria’s Fresh! Graduate awards celebrates the next wave of Victorian graduates in contemporary craft and design, providing an important opportunity for graduates beginning their careers as makers.

RMIT is ranked 16th in the World for Art and Design (QS Rankings 2016).

Winners in Craft Victoria's 2017 Fresh! Graduate Showcase

Michaela Pegum, winner of the Pieces of Eight Prize
Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) (Honours) Gold & Silversmithing

Bec Smith, winner of the Frankie Magazine Prize
Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) Ceramics

Cara Johnson, winner of the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins Prize
Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) (Honours) Gold & Silversmithing

Lauralai Wilson, winner of the Craft Retail Award
Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) (Honours) Gold & Silversmithing

Rachael Siklic, winner of the Future Leaders Award
Associate Degree in Design (Furniture)

RMIT graduates who were finalists included in Craft Victoria's 2017 Fresh! Graduate Showcase

Katie Barter, Bachelor of Fashion (Design) (Honours)

Katherine Hubble, Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) Gold & Silversmithing

Tessy King, Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) (Honours) Ceramics

Siteng Wei, Bachelor Arts (Fine Art) (Honours) Gold & Silversmithing

Story: Scott Knight