South Australian Museum

Competition overview

Purpose of the Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize

The Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize was launched in 2002 and commemorates the birth of the South Australian Museum’s first curator, Frederick George Waterhouse. The prize is an opportunity for artists to investigate the world around them, and present their perspectives on natural science. It encourages artists to make a statement about the scientific issues facing our planet, and offers a valuable platform for them to contribute to the environmental debate. Over the years the competition has become a much loved fixture on the arts calendar, allowing artists and audiences to explore natural science through a range of creative outlets.

Prizes:

Two main award categories are available, these being an Open Prize with a $30,000 prize and an Emerging Artist Prize with a $10,000 prize.

Visitors to the South Australian Museum exhibition can also vote on The People’s Choice Dr Wendy Wickes Memoriam Prize, awarded to a finalist artist who has been judged by the people to have communicated the most significant scientific message within the spirit of the competition.

The People’s Choice Dr Wendy Wickes Memoriam Prize is generously provided by her life’s companion.

Important Dates:

Entries may be submitted from Monday 25 October 2021 until 5pm Friday 25 February 2022.

The selected works must arrive at the South Australian Museum between Monday 2 May and Friday 13 May 2022.

For further information, including full competition rules and entry form, please CLICK HERE.

More information:

For further information please contact waterhouseartprize@samuseum.sa.gov.au.

There are less than two weeks remaining to enter the 2020 Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize!

The prize, for artists whose work considers the natural world, is open to practitioners of any form of visual fine art, with the exception of pure photography. It’s an opportunity for artists to engage with the world around them and use their art to make a statement about the scientific issues facing our planet.

The Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize has categories for Open and Emerging Artists with a total prize pool of $45,000. Judges are drawn from across the spectrum of arts and sciences. For the 2020 prize they are:

Dr David Gaimster, Chief Executive, Auckland War Memorial Museum.
Alexie Glass-Kantor, Executive Director, Artspace Sydney.
Professor Anton van den Hengel, Director, Australian Institute for Machine Learning.
Brian Oldman, Director, South Australian Museum.

Thank you to all artists who have already finalised their submissions. For others, you still have time to enter, or to finalise an entry you have saved as a draft in our entry system.

Entries in the 2020 Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize will close on Friday 13 March 2020 at 5pm ACDT.

For further information, including full competition rules, please click here.

Best of luck to all entrants.