Inaugural Mavis Hall Trust Grant

The successful applicant for 2021 has been announced!
And the winner is Sonya Thoms!

Inaugural Mavis Hall Trust Grant

The CAW Board is very excited to announce that Sonya Thoms is the winner of the inaugural Mavis Hall CAW Trust Grant. Our three judges were Roger Beale, Kerry McInnis and Ilona Lasmanis, and they were unanimous in their judgment of Sonya’s submission. 

 

The objectives of the ‘Mavis Hall CAW Trust Grant’ are to: 

  • benefit the recipient for further study or purchase of materials or any expenses reasonably connected to further progress the recipient’s advancement in any area of art; 

  • benefit the CAW through requiring the recipient to outline their ongoing involvement in the Association as a result of the scholarship. 

 

Each year, the award is announced at the AGM in October. The successful applicant is required to fulfil their winning proposal within 12 months from November. They are asked to present a short 6-month progress report to the Trustees (May) and a final report two months after the grant has expired (January), detailing how they have benefited from the grant monies.  

 

In the words of our re-emerging artist, Sonya Jane Thoms, 

“My goal over the next 12 months is to produce a body of work in the portraiture genre. As someone new to painting, I am really looking to refine my skills and further develop my understanding of painting. With the support of a mentoring relationship, which I have established for this project, I aim to be gutsy! I expect to go to uncomfortable places through the exploration and experimentation of different artistic techniques. I feel so honoured to have received this Award, as it will enable me to take this trip into the unknown and, hopefully come out the other end as a wiser, and as a more accomplished practitioner. I’m keen on providing windows into my learning journey, and I will diarise my adventure using a visual journal. I will also produce a video blog to share with others in the CAW community and the world beyond. With thanks to Mavis Hall and the wonderful CAW community, please join me for what promises to be an artistic adventure during my year of living curiously.” Thank you. 

Sonya 

Sonya Thoms | Mavis Hall Grant

Sonya Jane Thoms – Oil painting – Subject: Neville Perkins.
(SBS Portrait finalist, 2020)