Celebrate remarkable portraiture from WA youth and contribute your own.
The Lester Prize Youth Awards encourages the creative talents of young, aspiring, and emerging artists. It is open to all High School students across Australia from school years 7 to 12.
The Youth Award allows entrants to showcase their works and present their unique artistic perspectives, helps build their confidence to further their art practice, and allows them to share their stories with the wider community.
As part of the Youth Week WA KickstART Festival, you will be able to view the works of the 2021 Youth Award finalists online in a special exhibition.
Additionally, mark your calendars because The Lester Prize will be calling for entries to their 2023 Youth Awards this July!
The Prize pool consists of:
Prizes for Students (Years 11-12, Years 9-10, Years 7-8) | Cash prizes, art supplies & framing valued at $4,125
Prizes for Schools (Years 10-12, Years 7-9) | Professional art workshops by Lester Prize Adult Finalists valued at $1,500
The Youth Awards are kindly supported by Oxlades Art Supplies, Montauk Lighting Co., Arts Edge Photo & Frame, the Valuing Children Initiative, Lions Club, and the City of Perth.
Details
When: Friday 8 - Saturday 16 April
Where: Online via the KickstART Festival website
About The Lester Prize
What is The Lester Prize? It is not one point-of-view, one tone nor one hue. The Lester Prize exhibits all our traits—the heroic, the despicable, the humble, the deplorable, the principled and the fallen.
When you look upon these portraits of others, you can’t help but see yourself reflected. The Lester Prize captures what it means to be ‘them’, to be ‘me’ and to be ‘us’. With this ancient continent behind it, The Lester Prize looks out while welcoming the world in.
It is for portraiture that comes from an unexpected place, but can speak to all. It is for the elevation of the artist but against vacuous celebrity. It is for quality irrespective of style. It is for insight over fashion. It builds reputations, not just venerates those who already have one.
This is what makes The Lester Prize the fresh face of portraiture.
About the Youth Week WA KickstART Festival
Presented by Propel Youth Arts WA, the KickstART Festival has been the flagship event of Youth Week WA for 12 years running. KickstART offers over 60 free events - including workshops, talks, performances, mentorships, exhibitions, markets, and other special events - between 8 - 16 April, for young people aged 12-26.
Due to growing concerns about COVID-19 and the anticipated continued spread of Omicron across our communities in Boorloo (Perth) and WA, the Propel team has decided to pivot towards digital and hybrid formats for the delivery of the KickstART Festival this April.
The Youth Week WA KickstART Festival 2022 is presented by Propel Youth Arts WA and is funded by the Government of Western Australia through the Department of Communities and the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries. KickstART is also supported by Lotterywest, the City of Perth, the City of Stirling, the City of Fremantle, and the City of Vincent.