126 / Copy of Dutch masterpiece keeps Wynne Prize
The Wynne Prize for Australian Landscape remains with the copy of a 17th century Dutch masterpiece, where the plagiarizer has omitted the hard-to-paint bits - the people.
The Sydney art-loving public first has been duped and now is being insulted. Irreparable damage has been done to the Wynne. The reputation of the Wynne judges and Art Gallery of NSW trustees is in tatters. The director of the AGNSW has lost all credibility - as have our art critics, who have rolled over in not condemning the farce in the strongest terms. The balderdash emanating from board and art gallery director about ‘legitimacy of appropriation’ is breathtakingly pedestrian. That this fiasco is allowed to happen confirms the Sydney art establishment as hopelessly provincial. Thanks for nothing, AGNSW.
