Nigel Milsom wins the Archibald Prize for 2015

This years prestigious Archibald Prize for 2015 has been awarded to artist Nigel Milsom for his incredible portrait of Sydney barrister Charles Waterstreet.

Archibald Prize winning portrait of Charles Waterstreet by Nigel Milsom

Milsom was announced the winner in a ceremony held at the Art Gallery of NSW. The prize for the prestigious win is $100,000.

Charles Waterstreet is famous for being the personality that tv show Rake was loosely based on.

The portrait took Milsom 3 years to complete, but the end product serves as a homage to Waterstreet. Nigel has long battled with personal demons that manifested into the artist becoming entangled with the law. Charles Waterstreet was the man who aided Milsom through his legal battles and helped sort out the mess that ensued.

The barrister and artist have known each other for many years through their families. Their friendship became stronger through the years with Waterstreet’s help being instrumental in getting Milsom out of jail.

Nigel Milsom with his award winning portrait

Milsom commented about the piece, “I’ve tried to depict his otherworldly-type character.”

“He’s a complex person so I’ve had to try and exaggerate a lot of his physical features to capture his largeness.”

What stands out most about the portrait is the way Milsom has painted his hands, which he painted to look like Waterstreet is reaching out his hands in a gesture of help. The portrait does Charles a lot of justice, while still capturing that uniqueness that Milsom has with his paintings. They are so recognisable by the way they’re painted and shaded.

Nigel pictured with friend Charles Waterstreet

The win comes a few months after Juniper Hall held an exhibition of his award winning artwork, including the Moran Art Prize Award winning piece Uncle Paddy. The Moran Arts Foundation have supported Nigel and his art for many years, and were especially supportive of him when he went through his troubles with the law.

Nigel Milsom- The Eyes have it

The Archibald Prize exhibition will be held until the 27th of September.

Where: The Art Gallery of NSW

When: Exhibition on now until the 27th of September

Tickets: Prices start at $15 for adults.

For more information, check out the Art Gallery website here.