Emerge Youth Art Awards

James Giddy

James Giddy is a multidisciplinary artist who has gained recognition for his large-scale public art works both domestically and internationally. Based in Western Australia Giddy was initially recognised through mural work for Form WA’s Public Project (2015) and completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Curtin University (2016).

With foundations in watercolour painting, Giddy pays homage to contrast and composition, looking to the natural environment and his near surroundings for inspiration. The immediacy and sense-of-place achieved by the French motif of ‘en plein air’ painting, translates through a lot of his mural and studio work.  

Giddy’s works encourage the audience to question and bring their own contextual understanding to the composition, whilst providing a platform of familiarity in the subject and its action. Through these dynamics of a subject and its ground, Giddy often visits themes concerning the every-day and the common civilian, whilst using the public reach of his mural work to look at environmental awareness and conservation, drawing focus to nature in an urban environment or on a man-made structure.

// James Giddy on Insta

Anna Nazzari

Anna Nazzari is a Perth-based artist, whose practice often focuses on the human othering of animals through Sci-fi, Gothic or Post-Apocalyptic themes.  

She has exhibited locally and interstate, and her collaborative and non-collaborative screen-based works have been shown at numerous international film festivals. Nazzari is collected by the Art Gallery of South Australia. Significant past exhibitions include Resurface: Gothic Tales from the Indian Ocean – IOTA Festival (2024); Walyalup Waters - 10 Nights in Port (2023) Strangers on the Shore – Perth Festival (2022), and Monster Theatres - Adelaide Biennial (2020). 

In 2011, she completed a Doctor of Philosophy (Art) on the absurd fate of gender ambiguous narratives. She currently works as a Lecturer at Curtin University’s School of Media, Creative Arts and Social Inquiry, via the on campus Fine Art and OUA Art Studies program.

// Anna Nazzari on Insta

Sam Hopkins

Sam Hopkins is an Australian-Swiss sculptor whose upbringing on a vast property in the Perth Hills, surrounded by a seemingly endless nature reserve, kindled his love for the natural world. It was the catalyst for an ever-growing fascination with material and form.  

Working alongside and mentored by senior sculptor Johannes Pannekoek, Hopkins has developed a distinct practice focused on large-scale works that explore tension, movement, and transformation. He has exhibited across Australia, including at Sculpture by the Sea (Bondi and Cottesloe), Sculpture at Bathers, and Sculpture for Clyde. His work is held in public and private collections such as Brookfield Properties Perth, the City of Melville, and the Minderoo Foundation. 

Alongside his art practice, Hopkins has worked extensively as a sculpture installer for major exhibitions and public art projects, deepening his technical expertise with large-scale works. 

His accolades include the Western Australian Sculptor Scholarship at Sculpture by the Sea Cottesloe (2020) and the Best Artwork Award at Fine Art at Hale (2024). He was selected for the Clitheroe Foundation Emerging Artists Mentor Program, receiving guidance from NAS lecturer Dave Horton, which led to a two-week art tour in New York City with National Art School sculpture students in 2024.

// Sam Hopkins on Insta

Melissa Clements Artist Talk

Join acclaimed artist Melissa Clements as she shares her journey and experiences as a young creative, offering a candid look into the challenges and triumphs of forging a path in the art world.

Melissa Clements is a 26-year-old British-born fine artist, working in Fremantle. She utilises classical painting to explore the dualities of existence, as avenues to make sense of being alive in the contemporary world.

Melissa has received classical training from The New York Academy of Art and the National Art School and has been a finalist in The Archibald, Lester and Darling Prizes. She has been commissioned to create official portraits for key figures including the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Western Australia, The Honourable Peter Quinlan and The Honourable Robert French, AC for The University of Western Australia. Melissa’s work is held in public and private collections across Australia.

In 2023, Melissa was the Studio 7 Resident at PS Art Space, during which she travelled to the remote extremes of the High Arctic, returned to her hometown in rural England and connected with the local community in Fremantle; all in search of stories and experiences that drive the human spirit.

// Melissa Clements on Insta

Event details:

Date: Sunday 3rd August

Time: 2:00pm-3:30pm

Venue: Tresillian Arts Centre

How to register: Free event, limited spots available.

Book here

Judy Rogers Curatorial Talk

Join acclaimed artist Judy Rogers, now in her 11th year as curator of Emerge Youth Art Awards, for an inspiring presentation as she shares her insights into this year’s exhibition lineup and offers valuable advice for young artists entering art prizes. 

Judy Rogers is an independent curator and visual artist. Hungarian-born and science-trained, Rogers arrived in Perth in 1995. She has a depth of experience in directing and curating projects in cultural institutions. She is a strong advocate for community art and visual arts in Western Australia. 

She curated and managed over forty exhibitions during her appointment in the Blend(er) Gallery Joondalup between 2006-2011. She curated her ‘Out of the Suitcase’ travelling exhibition showing from 2016 to 2018 in three regional galleries in Western Australia and abroad in St Petersburg and Budapest. Her next travelling exhibition ‘Romancing Botany’ showed from 2018 to 2019 in five regional galleries in Western Australia. 

Her independent curatorial projects include the Planners Art Exhibition at Brookfield Place Perth 2018, and Floribunda24 at LostEden Gallery Dwellingup, 2024. She has curated the City of Nedlands’ Emerge Youth Art Awards for the past decade. 

As a visual artist, Rogers’ work ranges from intricate paintings and public sculpture. Recognised internationally, this year she takes part in the International Arts Exchange Exhibition at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Japan. She exhibited at the 18th Asian Arts Biennale in 2018 and the G20 Art Agenda Exhibition in China 2016. 

She has had twenty-four solo shows in Australia and solo exhibitions in Budapest and St Petersburg. 

Her recently commissioned botanical artwork is on display at the City of Melville. She won the Cossack Art Award North West Flora and Fauna Prize in 2023, sponsored by Rio Tinto. 

Rogers is a highly sought after art teacher and teaches art at Tresillian Arts Centre. She was a lecturer at the Applecross Senior High School Gifted and Talented Program from 2012 to 2015, and Central Metropolitan College of TAFE Perth from 1997 to 1999. 

She is frequently entrusted with the challenging responsibility of serving as a judge for various prestigious events, including the Collie Art Prize 2025, the City of Wanneroo Northern Perspectives 2019, the City of South Perth Emerging Artist Award 2017, the Vasse Art Award 2010, and the St George’s Art Awards 2008.

// Judy Rogers on Insta

Event details:

Date: Sunday 10th August

Time: 2:00pm-3:30pm

Venue: Tresillian Arts Centre

How to register: Free event, limited spots available.

Book here