Art Prize Bittersweet for Laura

For one Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) staff member, the 2015 City of Hobart Art Prize has been a particularly memorable – if somewhat bittersweet – experience.

TMAG Visitor Services Officer Laura Kennedy found out she was shortlisted as a finalist in this year's prize the same day she was diagnosed with a brain tumour.

In July Laura successfully underwent surgery to remove her tumour, and she is currently undergoing a course of chemotherapy and radiation therapy to help prevent it recurring.

She says her art making has helped her express what she's been going through, and she has enjoyed having a creative outlet.

Laura has been a VSO at TMAG since 2013, while simultaneously working on her art practice, with her work featuring in several publications and exhibitions.

Since her diagnosis, she has won the Clarence City Council's Poochibald Prize and next month her work will be part of the Wanderlust group show at the Modern Eden Gallery in San Francisco.

Laura also recently donated some of her works to the Royal Hobart Hospital, where she received her treatment, and she is now busy curating an exhibition of international female artists for late 2016 to raise money for anti-domestic violence charity White Ribbon.

Laura's drawing, The second Leucistic prairie dog, is currently on show at TMAG as part of the 2015 City of Hobart Art Prize exhibition.

You can also read Laura's own moving account of her journey at the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation website.

The City of Hobart Art Prize 2015 is on show in TMAG's Argyle Galleries until Sunday 29 November 2015.