P.E Nation’s global public relations manager, Louise Gaffikin has issued a statement after the company allegedly tried to stop a 25-year-old artist from submitting a portrait of Pip Edwards for the Archibald Prize.
In a series of leaked emails viewed by PEDESTRIAN.TV, Gaffikin rejected the finished painting stating that it made Edwards look “much older than her age.”
P.E Nation publicity have now come out and addressed these emails in a statement to the Daily Mail.
“Pip is a creative individual. She has a wealth of ideas, thoughts and openness,” Gaffikin said.
“There is always room for wide interpretation and personal subjectiveness when it comes to artistic expression and it is often subjective.
“She appreciates the artist’s take on her, hence why the portrait was submitted for consideration.”
The artist, Lauren Ferrier, told P.TV that she needed Edwards to sign a form to prove to the Art Gallery of NSW that Pip sat for the portrait. Otherwise, the painting could not be entered.
But almost a year later, Gaffikin said via email that they would not be signing the form.
“Thank you so much for sending through the imagery, I am sure you have been working hard on getting this together,” Gaffikin wrote in the email.
“Which makes this email hard to send, however to be transparent and honest, we won’t be able to sign the consent form for the image to be put forward, having worked so closely with Pip over the past 3 years, I just know she will not align with the imagery.
“I have to be honest and say she looks much older beyond her years in this photo. I don’t think she could resonate with this painting and having it being put to the public.”
“I’m just sort of at a point where I’m so over it,” Ferrier told P.TV “But the time when I thought I couldn’t enter the competition and stuff, it was pretty disappointing. And it still is really disappointing.”
In a seperate statement to P.TV, P.E Nation denied preventing Ferrier from entering the competition.
“Pip did not prevent the painting from being shown at the Archibald, our understanding was the painting was submitted unfortunately however not chosen for final selection,” Gaffikin said.
