Australian anxiety expert and Generation Next collaborator Prof Jennie Hudson has been captured on canvas by 2019 Archibald Prize entrant Joe Lander.
Professor Hudson is the Director of the Centre for Emotional Health, a Professor at the Department of Psychology at Macquarie University, and a previous Generation Next educational seminar presenter – and it was her work in helping children and adolescents suffering with anxiety and depression that brought her together with the artist.
Joe Lander approached Prof Hudson at the university about his plan for a series called ‘Portraits of Recovery’ that would feature Australian males suffering from mental illness.
“I loved the idea,” Prof Hudson told 9Honey. “I thought it was fabulous and I was really excited about it because it was really aligned with where I was heading in a research direction.”
Prof Hudson said she felt that showing examples of other boys and men who were experiencing struggles would help to reduce the stigma surrounding male mental health in adolescent boys.
The artist completed his series late last year, and then chose Prof Hudson as his third Archibald Prize entry. The subject of entry must be someone distinguished in art, letters, science or politics, and Joe told 9Honey that Jennie was a natural choice and fit the criteria of the competition perfectly.
Joe Lander named his portrait ‘Let Children Play in the Mud’ which was inspired by a popular TEDx talk by Professor Hudson on how to raise healthy and happy children.
Prof Hudson has also contributed a chapter to the Generation Next handbook, Growing Happy, healthy Young Minds (pictured above).
Archibald Prize entries for 2019 are on view at the Art Gallery of NSW in Sydney 11 May – 8 Sep 2019 ahead of a national tour. The winner is being announced on May 10.
Image source: Generation Next
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