A friend of mine, Nick Stathopoulos, is a fabulous artist. So fabulous that two of his portraits have made the finals of two of the most prestigious art awards in Australia.

The Archibald, which really is THE most prestigie:

David Stratton, a well-known film critic back home

Getting into the Archibald is the Holy Grail of portrait painting back home. More, actually, because it’s the most famous art prize we have. Gets covered by all the media at home. Is very big deal. There’s even a special packers’s prize given by the people who unpack all the entries.

And the Doug Moran:

Shaun Tan

While they’re both brilliant, my fave is definitely the portrait of Shaun Tan. I love how Nick’s incorporated creatures and images from Shaun Tan’s own work. The painting is gorgeous and witty and wonderful. Pretty much like Nick, really.

Let’s all keep our fingers crossed for him. Go, Nick, go!