Nick Stathopoulos has won the 2016 Archibald People’s Choice Award, recognised for his hyper-real portrait of lawyer and former child soldier in Sudan, Deng Adut.
Ecstatic about the win, Stathopoulos said the general public are not given enough credit when it comes to matters of art.
“In my experience they are very clued-in. And when it comes to the Archibald Prize People’s Choice Award, they seem to get it right every year,” he said.
Adut came to be Sathopoulos’ subject matter after the artist saw him on a Western Sydney University advertisement, reports Fairfax Media.
“I was so excited when he consented. He’s an incredible, powerful and worthy subject for an artist,” said Stathopoulos, who revealed that it took more than four months to complete the portrait.
Though Adut was impressed by the final result, he did say it was difficult for him to look at.
“Nick, you are a great artist man,” said Adut while on stage today.
“When the painting came up and I saw it for the first time I told Nick that he had painted a monster. and you did paint a monster, you did,” which he later explained to mean that in the portrait he saw his life story and the flashbacks, which up to this day haunt him.
According to Art Gallery of NSW director Michael Brand, Stathopoulos’ entry was the clear favourite to win, with the public sentiment coinciding with the judge’s opinion.
The artist has been represented as an Archibald finalist five times, and as the winner this year has also been awarded a $3500 cheque.
