Queensland College of Art student Lauren Edmonds has been awarded two honours at the Sunshine Coast Art Prize under the inaugural New Media category.
The 21-year-old’s entry News Factory, took out two awards valued at $5,500 following selection by judges and sponsors Earth Base Productions and Analogue Digital.
Lauren describes her award-winning work as a combination of animation and film, accompanied with sound, projected onto a suspended object created using newspapers.
“My artworks often contain political or social criticism that questions the status quo on various issues to generate a further awareness on matters or engage viewers to challenge the existing state of affairs,” she explains.
“In News Factory I am addressing concerns regarding the news industry, particularly the manipulation of the masses through the distortion of information.”
The Fine Art Honours student says she hopes the prizes “will provide greater opportunities to learn new skills and further develop my practice as an artist working with new media”.
“This is the first time I have had the opportunity to show a new media installation in an exhibition outside the context of university so it has been a great experience.”
James Muller from Earth Base Productions spoke of how impressed the judges were with Lauren’s combining of digital technology and sculptural elements and how delighted they were to support such engaging, multi-layered work.
“Through a tailored mentorship program we are pleased to support the next generation of local talent on the Sunshine Coast,” he said.
Matthew Haynes from Analogue Digital agreed, saying Lauren was a clear winner.
“The concept was interesting, of a high quality and incorporated a lot of detail. It was very well designed,” he said.
Lauren has been entering art competitions since she was just 13 and held her first solo exhibition at 15 at the Cooroy Butter Factory.
The multi-media artist was also selected for a Creative Generations Excellence in Visual Art and Design Award, with a touring exhibition around Queensland in 2012/13, starting at GoMA.
After completing her Bachelor degree in 2014, Lauren has returned to the QCA to undertake an Honours year in Fine Art.
Her award-winning work is now on show as part of the Digital Disruption exhibition, on display until March 15 at Caloundra Regional Gallery.