Artist’s Statement

The ends justify the means – a destructive philosophy which has encouraged people to throw morals aside with the intention of becoming successful. The focus of my work is to highlight the decay of morality within youth as a result of this attitude.

Artists, including Hieronymus Bosch and Francis Bacon, have produced pieces commenting on the moral status of society with regards to issues including religion and conflict, whereas I aim to challenge the sustainability of morals with humanity’s definition of success. Currently, this is characterised as living, or at least appearing to live, an opulent lifestyle. A consequence of the rise of social media is the accelerated spread of this message, in turn exacerbating the downfall of morality.

I have utilised both dynamic motions and precision in my works, similar to contemporary artist Robert Sample, to represent the loss of youth in the changing world. Subtle symbolism relating to opulence, including jewellery and luxury branding, are incorporated into the pieces, juxtaposing decaying qualities in the youthful portraits.

The subjects are both people I know and don’t know to emphasise that each painting is not about a specific individual but instead commenting on a culture. I hope to encourage the viewer to reflect upon society’s lust for an image of wealth, whether it be authentic or not, and the detrimental outcomes such greed has on the moral compass, as I feel the latter is often overlooked.

Georgina Davy is 18 years old and has lived in Tasmania for most of her life. She enjoys time with friends and being outside with her horses. At The Friends' School, she has taken art for the last six years but plans to study mathematics and science in the coming years.

The Art2Words Writing Prize is an annual writing competition at The Friends’ School. Read the full list of short-listed and winning entries here.