by Carla Caruso

‘Sticks and stones’ isn’t just the name of a playground rhyme. It’s the theme of the oil painting, which won the main prize at our Adelaide Park Lands Art Prize on March 24.

Goolwa Beach visual artist John Foubister, who works from a home shed, scooped $20,000 for his piece, The Nobility of Rocks and Sticks. Life on the Ground.

At the VIP launch night, John told us: “I’m really excited and I feel very humbled by it because there are so many artists … and [you see] how much it’s good luck, just being in the right place, with the right group of judges, at the right time.”

Judges included creative artist Loene Furler, Helpmann Academy CEO Jane MacFarlane, Art Gallery of SA curator Leigh Robb, and visual artist Angela Valamanesh.

The group had the tough task of whittling down a record 480 entries to just 80 finalists. Fifteen other winners – across different categories and mediums – also won prizemoney of $2,000 each.

For John, he’s been a finalist in the competition twice before, winning smaller amounts, but this is the first time he’s taken out the big prize. It was a coup for the 68-year-old, who has been painting for 45 years.

When asked what he thought could’ve caught the judges’ eyes this time, John said: “I think my work’s complex in a simplified way.

“The image looks simple, but it’s a complex distillation of thinking about the world. And also, the way I use paint is a bit different from how other people use it, and the kind of extraction that I deal with.

“I don’t paint just the surface of something; the skin of it, reflecting light. I paint something of its kind of weight in the world or its kind of essence in the world.”

The winning piece isn’t set in a specific park but instead draws on John’s memories and experiences in various spots.

“I’ve spent a lot of time in the Park Lands over the years – I used to cycle the [River Torrens] Linear Park [trail] all the time,” John said.

“I can remember Christmas Eve parties in Botanic Park [Park 11], with my little kids, and Christmas lunch in Botanic Garden, and also the horse park [Lefevre Park / Nantu Wama – Park 6] with my son.

“But it’s also connected to my own childhood, collecting rocks, being on the ground. I think kids spend a lot of time on the ground.

“[Objects like sticks and stones] are almost magical when you spend a bit of time with them, give them some attention and time. They’re beautiful things.

“And so, really this painting is taking some of the humblest elements – often they’re literally underfoot and we don’t notice them as much as other things, but they’re as beautiful. They’re part of the living continuum.”

While modern life has “turned everything into a commodity”, John said the painting helps to counter this. “Rocks are not interesting unless you can sell them off. Selling timber – sticks aren’t interesting unless you’re selling them somewhere…

“So, I like the idea [with this] that you slow right down, get back into the world, and you see the value and the beauty of everything.”

Among the 15 other prize winners on the night was Hamish Fleming, who took out the Young Artist (under-25) category. His painting, Nightwalk, also featured a humble object – a rubbish bin.

Interestingly, the 21-year-old says he was “actually hesitant to enter” at first. But: “I looked at the judges saying, ‘Hey, we are really keen to see critical and confronting art of the Park Lands. Go after us, have fun, just go for it.’

“And I went, okay, sure. Here is a bin … I did the on-site studies for it at 2.45 in the morning in the South Park Lands … I definitely wasn’t alone [that night], although my visual senses were telling me otherwise.”

Hamish added: “A lot of my practice is devoted to making a balanced perspective. I do a lot of grittier things, and so, I wanted to bring that in. I thought about doing a landscape of some form or another. But I went for this instead.”

As for the $2,000 prize money, Hamish reckons that’ll “go into the next exhibition and maintaining my studio”. “I work at The Mill on Angas Street with a bunch of other great artists.”

On the night of nights, Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith announced the winners. In her words: “Each entry in the Adelaide Park Lands Art Prize is a love letter to the Park Lands and why it matters to our city.”

All the artworks are now available to buy and are on display at the Adelaide Festival Centre until May 7, 2023. Part proceeds go towards fundraising for the APA.