The
winner: Kate Newby might have felt her chances were
slipping as judge Mami Kataoka introduced her work as “probably the least
eloquent”. Fortunately she went on to add “it embraces memories of locations” and concluded by
announcing Newby the winner.
The
MC: Chris Saines went DIY on the introductions,
which was a tough break for the Ridge family.
The
past: For the first time past winners of the
Walters Prize were invited to the dinner and were welcomed with a huge round of
applause.
The
jury: Having arranged for artists to haul their
sorry asses from Europe and the Arctic Circle to attend the Walters Prize
dinner, two of the jury (David Cross and Gwynn Porter) didn’t manage to make it
over from Australia.
The
judge: Mami Kataoka caused a brief will-she-split-the-prize
moment when she talked about not liking hierarchies or choosing one artist
ahead of another.
The
fortune teller: Josie McNaught with great aplomb claimed
to know the winner on her lunchtime radio show and Facebook, then she gave a
name, and got it wrong.
The
media: Next morning when the NZ Herald did announce
the results it was in just a para and claimed that Kate Newby was “a strong
favourite to win”. Yeah right. The Sunday Star Times ‘reporter’ at least spread bits
of the AAG’s press release over eight paras with a pic of Kate Newby, which was
nice. Unfortunately he also did a sex change on the judge.
The
jury again: claimed (well one of them did anyway)
that the AAG refused to let them speak to the media on the who-saw-what issue.
Long-nose award for that one?
Image: Kate Newby I'm so ready 2010
