"The gift of uninterrupted time and space to produce my art will be a stunning adventure," says Christchurch artist Victoria Bell, Christchurch artist announced as winner of the 2005 Olivia Spencer Bower Foundation Award.

Victoria Bell a soft sculptural artist, who currently lectures at the Design & Arts College in Christchurch, was chosen from 88 applicants throughout New Zealand to receive the coveted award, which includes a financial award of $30,000 and use of a studio apartment at The Arts Centre of Christchurch from which to live and work for a year.
"The gift of uninterrupted time and space to produce my art will be a stunning adventure," says Christchurch artist Victoria Bell, Christchurch artist announced as winner of the 2005 Olivia Spencer Bower Foundation Award.

Victoria Bell a soft sculptural artist, who currently lectures at the Design & Arts College in Christchurch, was chosen from 88 applicants throughout New Zealand to receive the coveted award, which includes a financial award of $30,000 and use of a studio apartment at The Arts Centre of Christchurch from which to live and work for a year.

"I have thought of many things  I want to investigate and develop further in  my work  during this residency -  the possibility of printing my own textiles for  sculptural works and the pleasure of returning to drawing being foremost in my mind."

Bell is known for her stuffed fabric patchwork replicas, transforming materials into tactile objects that focus on the surface and pattern of the textiles. One such recent work - a highlight of the current Art & Industry Urban Arts Biennial 04 SCAPE from a different angle - Peacock Fountain Installation/ Design no. 38 wittily interprets the brightly coloured and oft-debated Peacock Fountain in the Christchurch Botanic Gardens.

She says, "I am delighted that the Olivia Spencer Bower Award will allow me the opportunity to consolidate my art practice to date and clarify my position as an artist inCanterbury. I am especially excited to be living again within the cultural precinct of The Arts Centre, Botanic Gardens, Christchurch Art Gallery  and Canterbury Museum. This area has fed a great deal into my work, and I plan to  re-discover these places as sources for my next body of work."

Deborah McCormick, Director of the Art & Industry Biennial Trust and a member of this year's selection committee, comments that the Award, now in its eighteenth year, has a reputation as one of the most esteemed and valuable art sponsorships available in New Zealand. She says, "Victoria demonstrates great promise and originality of practice, displaying a unique, witty, pop-craft and playful aesthetic."

Other members of the panel included Dr Pamela Gerrish Nunn, Associate Professor in Art History at the School of Fine Arts, University of Canterbury, and Seraphine Pick, recipient of the award in 1994. Gerrish Nunn comments that the Award is an important reminder of the role New Zealand artists have played in the making of a New Zealand art in the 20th century, given that its founder was not only a significant artist herself but a member of the Group and an active promoter of contemporary art. She says, "The Award gives emerging artists the opportunity to make something of their talent and ideas, presenting them with a constructive challenge to realise their potential."

Olivia Spencer Bower was a significant figure in the Canterbury art world until her death in 1982. She set up the Foundation to give financial assistance to artists and sculptors showing promise, with particular emphasis on future artistic potential rather than financial need. It was her intention to provide talented artists with the opportunity to work for one year pursuing their own direction as a painter or sculptor, freed from the necessity to seek outside employment. Under her will, Olivia Spencer Bower left all her artworks to the Foundation, and these have been gradually realised by the Trustees to form a capital base which will allow the awards to continue on in perpetuity.

Malcolm Ott a trustee of the Foundation says "The Foundation has been very pleased with the opportunities it has provided over the years to such artists as Pauline Rhodes, Joanna Braithwaite, Ruth Watson, Seraphine Pick, Saskia Leek, Jim Speers and Marcus Moore, to name a few. In celebration of the Award's success and our 25th year anniversary, the Foundation and the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu are planning an exhibition in 2007 of all the award recipients from 1987 to 2006, including some of the art works of Olivia Spencer Bower."