The pavilions are always one of the hot spots at the Royal Bathurst Show. The three pavilions, Beau Brown, Trevitt and Howard, are iconic buildings at the Bathurst Showground and come show time are full of the bets that Bathurst and the surrounding region has to offer.
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From long-time exhibitors to first-time participators, hundreds of people from across the Central West have been working hard and will continue to put in maximum effort right up until the show kicks off. Talents will be showcased across a variety of categories including creative writing, crafts, floral arrangements, needlework, spinning and weaving, home grown produce, decorated cakes, baking, preserves, honey, home brewing, dolls and toys, lapidary, scrap booking, and photography and art.
The Royal Bathurst Show Art section seeks out the best artists and aims to recognise excellence in painting, drawing, mixed media and sculpture. Some changes have been made to the Art Section, in keeping with the "returning to agricultural roots" theme, with Show Secretary, Brett Kenworthy and Chief Pavilion Steward, Kerri Small, determining that the overarching focus for artworks will be encouraging agricultural art and developing the profile and opportunities for young artists.
The Royal Bathurst Show Agricultural Art Prize will be introduced into this years competition and features a $250 cash prize and ribbon to recognise the best agricultural subject painting, with the winner selected from all artworks entered. Sponsored by the Kenworthy Family in its first year, Show Secretary Brett Kenworthy said it was a natural choice for the Bathurst Show Association.
"We had a long connection with renowned Australian portrait painter and self-taught artist Reg Campbell, who painted a number of large artworks for our association, especially for our 100th Show in 1968". The late Reg Campbell moved to Bathurst after completing military service and compiled an amazing collection of works, heavily focusing on the Central West, and featuring his 1990 Archibald Prize People's Choice Award winning self-portrait
Another award appearing at this year's show is the Royal Bathurst Show Young Painters Award. A historical award, the Young Painters will be re-introduced in 2019 with a $100 cash prize and ribbon that will acknowledge the best painting by a person under 18 years, with the winner selected from all artworks entered.
Continuing the strong connection the Royal Bathurst Show has with iconic Australian artists, The Young Painters Award was won by Brett Whiteley in 1956, and as his first ever prize, it helped confirm Whitley's career choice and life long love for the Central West. By reintroducing the show society hopes to encourage more young painters to take an interest in visual arts along with Bathurst and the surrounding region.