$15,000 Harden Art Prize awarded as national competition draws attention to region

The 2026 Harden Art Prize has been awarded to Wayne Elliott for his work Warracknabeal, taking out the $15,000 acquisitive prize from more than 300 entries across Australia. Elliott’s painting reflects a deeply personal connection to landscape. Inspired by time spent walking through the Victorian town of Warracknabeal, the work captures familiar elements — ANZAC Park as a place of sport and remembrance, Scott Street, the Yarriambiack Creek winding through the township, and the surrounding wheat fields that sit at the heart of the community. “Walking provides me with the opportunity to make sense of the landscape,” Elliott explains, describing how the painting brings together memory, movement and place into a single perspective. It’s a piece that feels simple at first glance, but the longer you look, the more you begin to recognise — not just a town, but the way people experience and understand where they live. As the acquisitive prize winner, Warracknabeal will become part of the local collection, with the artwork set to hang in the Harden Bendigo Bank following the exhibition’s conclusion at the Old Court House. Alongside the winner, Dwayne Jessell’s work, Infinite Sky, Enduring Land – Purnululu beneath the Stars, received Highly Commended, highlighting the strength and diversity of this year’s exhibition. Local artist Alli Geers, who lives in Harden, was also named a finalist in this year’s Harden Art Prize, selected from more than 300 entries across Australia. Geers, who recently returned to the area with her husband and children to take on the family farm, was recognised for her work Holding Pattern. The piece strips back detail to emphasise scale and rhythm, exploring how fleeting acts of labour animate the landscape, while the land itself remains constant and unwavering. See Alli's work as part of the ongong exhibition. And that’s where the value of the Harden Art Prize really sits. Events like this don’t just display art — they help people see landscape, culture and community in new ways. They bring national-level artists into a regional setting, while also putting local venues, businesses and the broader region on the map as an interesting destination. This year’s judges were Yvette Dal Pozzo, Director of Goulburn Regional Art Gallery, and acclaimed landscape artist Chris Kenyon, who has a connection to the region through previous work exploring the history of Ben Hall. Kenyon, who also created the original sketches for the first Mad Max film, attended the opening to announce the winner — reinforcing the link between place, story and artistic interpretation. With entries coming from across the country, the Harden Art Prize is steadily reinforcing the reputation of Harden and the surrounding region as an exciting arts destination — creating more visibility, more visitors, and more opportunity for our talented creative community. It’s a reminder that art doesn’t just belong in cities — it can grow, connect and lead from regional communities too. The exhibition continues daily until 3pm on Monday, April 27, with visitors encouraged to experience the collection firsthand. Attendees can also vote for the $1,000 People’s Choice Award, which will be announced after the exhibition closes following the Anzac long weekend.