We’re honoured and delighted to announce the expert judging panel for The Lester Prize 2023.
We are thrilled to present this year’s Main Awards Judges. These experts will select the winners of The Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture ($50,000), the Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize ($5,000) and a Highly Commended Prize (up to $5,000) which will be exhibited at The Art Gallery of Western Australia from 22 September – 26 November 2023.
Emma Bitmead is Associate Curator of Historical Art at The Art Gallery of Western Australia. Prior to this position she led the digitisation of The State Art Collection at AGWA, and worked as a curator in Perth and the UK. Originally from Canberra, Emma implemented and managed the travelling exhibitions program at the National Portrait Gallery, where she worked across collections and exhibitions roles for a decade.
Alan Dodge has served in the art museum world for over 45 years. In 1972 Mr Dodge became a lecturer in the Education Department of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. In 1975 he was appointed the first Senior Research Officer of the fledgling Australian National Gallery (now National Gallery of Australia), where he stayed for 21 years. During that time, he held a number of positions, culminating in the role of Senior Advisor, Special Exhibitions and Development. In late 1996 Mr Dodge was appointed Director of the Art Gallery of Western Australia, a position he held for eleven years until the end of 2007, when he retired.
Alan has served for 15 years on the board of the National Portrait Gallery, has been a member of the Vice-Chancellor’s Strategic Advisory Board at Murdoch University as well as serving on a number of boards and committees involved in strategies for the cultural future of Perth and WA. He was also on the Opera and Classical Music Panel of the Helpmann Awards for six years.
Alan was made a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, by the French Government in 2004, an Honorary Fellow by Edith Cowan University in 2007, and was recognised with an honour in the Order of Australia (AM) in 2008 for service to the arts.
In 2011 he was named Western Australia Citizen of the Year, Culture, Arts and Entertainment, and made an Honorary Doctor of Letters by Murdoch University in 2012 and also an Honorary Doctor of Letters by Curtin University in 2018.
For the past decade, Gina Fairley has been the National Visual Arts Editor of ArtsHub Australia. Prior to that, she freelanced as a writer and curator specialising in the contemporary art of Southeast Asia for over a decade.
She was Regional Contributing Editor of Asian Art News and World Sculpture News (2005-2012, Hong Kong), Editorial Desk for the Philippines at ArtAsiaPacific and was Co-editor of their from 2007-08 Almanac. She has written over 50 catalogue essays, has curated exhibitions in America, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Australia.
Her writing career is backed by 14-years as an arts manager, working for Wollongong Art Gallery, Opera Australia, Haines Gallery San Francisco, and the Biennale of Sydney. Today she lives in the Southern Highlands (NSW), and balances her writing career with a studio practice, Small Impact Studio.
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