1
00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,440
Speaker 1: Well, as we know, Montana Kitching has won this year's

2
00:00:03,480 --> 00:00:06,800
Speaker 1: Portrait of a Senior Territory and Art Award for her

3
00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:11,440
Speaker 1: oil painting Vicki of Jacana. She's collected seven thousand dollars

4
00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:14,200
Speaker 1: prize money for her work, which will become part of

5
00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:17,040
Speaker 1: the Northern Territory Government's permanent collection.

6
00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:20,360
Speaker 2: And she joins me on the line right now. Good

7
00:00:20,360 --> 00:00:21,560
Speaker 2: morning to you, Montana.

8
00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:24,079
Speaker 3: Good morning here you going.

9
00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:26,640
Speaker 1: Yeah, good, great to have you on the show. Tell

10
00:00:26,720 --> 00:00:28,160
Speaker 1: us a bit about your art work.

11
00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:35,400
Speaker 3: Yeah, so I painted Vicky, our ward clerk at Darwin

12
00:00:35,600 --> 00:00:37,879
Speaker 3: Private Hospital on Jacana, the Wars that I work on.

13
00:00:39,159 --> 00:00:42,720
Speaker 3: And yeah, I'm pretty I'm still quite in shock that

14
00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:44,640
Speaker 3: we won.

15
00:00:45,120 --> 00:00:46,040
Speaker 2: How incredible.

16
00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:49,479
Speaker 1: So, Montana, you're a nurse who works at the Darwin

17
00:00:49,520 --> 00:00:52,440
Speaker 1: Private Hospital, but also clearly an artist.

18
00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:56,080
Speaker 3: Yeah, duel passion.

19
00:00:58,880 --> 00:01:03,160
Speaker 2: I love this. So what made you decide to paint

20
00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:04,240
Speaker 2: this portrait of Vicki?

21
00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:11,200
Speaker 3: Well, I I guess because I'm I'm not from Darwin originally.

22
00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:15,720
Speaker 3: I'm from in Melbourne and I don't really know that

23
00:01:15,920 --> 00:01:19,240
Speaker 3: many Senior Territorians up here. And I was like, oh,

24
00:01:19,280 --> 00:01:21,120
Speaker 3: I really. It was a couple of days before entries

25
00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:23,520
Speaker 3: close and I didn't know about this award at all,

26
00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:25,160
Speaker 3: but a friend was like, oh, you should enter this,

27
00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:27,600
Speaker 3: and I was like, oh gosh, but who will I paint?

28
00:01:28,120 --> 00:01:29,880
Speaker 3: And then I was like, you know, which, I just

29
00:01:29,959 --> 00:01:32,000
Speaker 3: need someone that is like, you know, people giving me

30
00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:34,759
Speaker 3: all these suggestions for who to paint and and all

31
00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:37,280
Speaker 3: these you know, these amazing ideas. But I was like,

32
00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:41,399
Speaker 3: I just want someone that like feels that that role

33
00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:43,840
Speaker 3: for me up here where I'm like out of home

34
00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:47,600
Speaker 3: and out of my you know, yeah, my home and

35
00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:51,640
Speaker 3: around my people. That's sort of like a reliable figure

36
00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:54,200
Speaker 3: and someone I can count on and someone that's really

37
00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:57,040
Speaker 3: appreciated and respected, and you know, it's not like the

38
00:01:57,080 --> 00:02:01,120
Speaker 3: classic person that would be painted for this. And yeah,

39
00:02:01,120 --> 00:02:02,440
Speaker 3: I was at work one day and I just looked

40
00:02:02,480 --> 00:02:05,560
Speaker 3: at her and went, oh my god, you I can

41
00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:07,040
Speaker 3: pay you. You're perfect for it.

42
00:02:07,120 --> 00:02:11,519
Speaker 2: So yeah, oh how beautiful. And was Vicky happy to

43
00:02:12,040 --> 00:02:13,440
Speaker 2: be painted? Obviously?

44
00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:16,079
Speaker 1: She was how's she feeling about now she's going to

45
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:17,520
Speaker 1: get this additional recognition.

46
00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:21,600
Speaker 3: I think she was originally really excited, and I think

47
00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:23,840
Speaker 3: she is really excited. But she just messaged me before

48
00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:27,080
Speaker 3: and said that she's been stopped by people asking for

49
00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:29,920
Speaker 3: autographs and photos, and I think she's a bit a

50
00:02:29,919 --> 00:02:32,079
Speaker 3: bit shocked and doesn't really know what to do with herself.

51
00:02:32,160 --> 00:02:35,639
Speaker 3: So I hope, I hope people are respecting her. Oh.

52
00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:40,720
Speaker 1: I love this because it sounds as though neither of

53
00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,040
Speaker 1: you expected that you were going to win.

54
00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:46,920
Speaker 3: No, not at all, not at all. And there were

55
00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:51,680
Speaker 3: so many amazing portraits in the Portrait of a Senior

56
00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:54,800
Speaker 3: Territory in this year that were equally as you know,

57
00:02:55,880 --> 00:02:58,600
Speaker 3: equally as deserving of surprise. So I think we're both

58
00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:01,400
Speaker 3: really really shocked and humbled by it.

59
00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:02,359
Speaker 2: Now, can you.

60
00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:05,160
Speaker 1: Sort of, I guess, paint us a bit of a

61
00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:07,720
Speaker 1: picture for want of a better words describing what the

62
00:03:07,760 --> 00:03:08,760
Speaker 1: portrait looks like.

63
00:03:11,080 --> 00:03:16,560
Speaker 3: So it's it's so it's just Vicky in her work uniform.

64
00:03:16,680 --> 00:03:20,160
Speaker 3: It's just a headshot, basically head portrait of her, and

65
00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:22,880
Speaker 3: she's got her face resting in her hand, and she's

66
00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:26,280
Speaker 3: sort of gazing off into the distance with a bit

67
00:03:26,320 --> 00:03:30,720
Speaker 3: of a cheek in her eye, and she's smiling, and

68
00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:33,440
Speaker 3: it's kind of just how I see Vicky. Like, she's

69
00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:40,000
Speaker 3: very calm, very warm, she's got really smiley, friendly eyes

70
00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:43,720
Speaker 3: and just like a really a really sweet, cheeky smile.

71
00:03:43,920 --> 00:03:50,160
Speaker 2: So yeah, yeah, how lovely Montana. You know what was

72
00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:52,400
Speaker 2: her reaction when you found out that you'd won.

73
00:03:55,760 --> 00:03:58,200
Speaker 3: Well, I called her because we weren't able to attend

74
00:03:58,320 --> 00:04:02,440
Speaker 3: the ceremony near the opening as it was in Alice Springs,

75
00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:05,560
Speaker 3: Ron Dawen, and so we were talking all day. You know,

76
00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:09,240
Speaker 3: we were kind of jokingly keeping checking flights to see

77
00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:12,000
Speaker 3: if they'd gone down miraculously, and we joked about, you know,

78
00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:16,000
Speaker 3: jumping on the greyhound bus to go and then yeah,

79
00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:18,440
Speaker 3: I attended via zoom and called her straight after, and

80
00:04:18,480 --> 00:04:21,280
Speaker 3: I was like, you won't believe it, And her first

81
00:04:21,320 --> 00:04:25,200
Speaker 3: reaction was just like we should have gone. But yes,

82
00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:26,840
Speaker 3: we're both very excited.

83
00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:30,080
Speaker 2: Oh how wonderful. And I love that you guys work together.

84
00:04:30,279 --> 00:04:32,120
Speaker 1: You must be really proud though as well, you know

85
00:04:32,160 --> 00:04:35,240
Speaker 1: the fact that you're not territory in the sense that

86
00:04:35,279 --> 00:04:38,039
Speaker 1: you didn't grow up here, but working really closely, you know,

87
00:04:38,160 --> 00:04:41,960
Speaker 1: at the hospital, and now you've taken out this really

88
00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:43,240
Speaker 1: prestigious award.

89
00:04:44,520 --> 00:04:47,680
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, it feels crazy. I do feel very proud.

90
00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:51,520
Speaker 1: Have you been painting for for a long time? Like,

91
00:04:51,600 --> 00:04:53,760
Speaker 1: tell me about your sort of your background when it

92
00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:55,920
Speaker 1: comes to being an artist.

93
00:04:57,640 --> 00:05:01,320
Speaker 3: Most of My family are artists, so my grandparents and

94
00:05:01,360 --> 00:05:04,560
Speaker 3: my parents and my siblings and a whole I come

95
00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:06,919
Speaker 3: from a family of artists, so I've sort of always

96
00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:12,679
Speaker 3: been making art in a very casual way. So while

97
00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:16,960
Speaker 3: you know, it's not really my first career, nursing is.

98
00:05:17,200 --> 00:05:19,760
Speaker 3: You know, I'm equally as passionate about nursing. Art has

99
00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:22,960
Speaker 3: always been something that I've done, but I've never entered

100
00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:26,000
Speaker 3: an award or anything like that. So most of my

101
00:05:26,080 --> 00:05:31,000
Speaker 3: art is usually about mental health and and like sexuality

102
00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:33,720
Speaker 3: and things like that. It's actually quite different to enter

103
00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:34,279
Speaker 3: a portrait.

104
00:05:35,000 --> 00:05:37,360
Speaker 2: How has your family reacted to your winning.

105
00:05:38,839 --> 00:05:43,839
Speaker 3: Oh they're very excited. Yeah, Yeah, they're very excited.

106
00:05:44,839 --> 00:05:46,680
Speaker 2: It's wonderful news.

107
00:05:46,880 --> 00:05:49,719
Speaker 1: And yeah, I just think it's a really beautiful story

108
00:05:49,760 --> 00:05:51,640
Speaker 1: as well, you know the fact that you guys work

109
00:05:51,720 --> 00:05:55,520
Speaker 1: together and and and it's one and both of you

110
00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:59,360
Speaker 1: sound very humble about it orland and unexpected. Now, tell

111
00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:03,960
Speaker 1: me any idea, how are you planning to spend that money?

112
00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:07,000
Speaker 3: Gosh, I have no idea. Part of me thinks that

113
00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:09,280
Speaker 3: I should just you know, I couldn't get to Alice

114
00:06:09,279 --> 00:06:10,919
Speaker 3: because we couldn't afford the flight. The part of me

115
00:06:10,960 --> 00:06:14,120
Speaker 3: thinks I should we should go to Alice and see

116
00:06:14,160 --> 00:06:17,440
Speaker 3: the exhibition with a bit of that money, and then

117
00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:20,880
Speaker 3: I'm not sure, probably just Christmas presents.

118
00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:23,680
Speaker 1: Really, just so of you and do you have it like,

119
00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:25,840
Speaker 1: do you have any idea as well how long those

120
00:06:25,839 --> 00:06:27,640
Speaker 1: works are going to be displayed for or what the

121
00:06:27,680 --> 00:06:30,839
Speaker 1: situation is as well with the beautiful portrait that you've painted.

122
00:06:32,080 --> 00:06:35,599
Speaker 3: Well, I know that the show is on until February.

123
00:06:35,640 --> 00:06:37,920
Speaker 3: I think it's until a twenty second or the nineteenth,

124
00:06:37,960 --> 00:06:41,520
Speaker 3: don't quote me, but it's definitely on till February, So

125
00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:45,520
Speaker 3: they'll all be hanging in the Rolene Arts Center until then.

126
00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:51,440
Speaker 3: And then I believe the NT government acquires it and

127
00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:52,880
Speaker 3: it goes into their permanent collection.

128
00:06:53,240 --> 00:06:56,480
Speaker 2: So you go, Well, how wonderful Montana.

129
00:06:56,520 --> 00:06:59,040
Speaker 1: It's lovely to speak to you this morning, and I

130
00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:01,360
Speaker 1: just think it's in incredible stuff. I love the fact

131
00:07:01,400 --> 00:07:03,040
Speaker 1: that you're a nurse that works at the day and

132
00:07:03,120 --> 00:07:07,840
Speaker 1: private hospital and that you've painted this beautiful portrait of

133
00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:10,160
Speaker 1: your work mate. I just think it sounds like such

134
00:07:10,160 --> 00:07:11,040
Speaker 1: a lovely story.

135
00:07:12,280 --> 00:07:14,960
Speaker 3: Yeah, thank you so much for having me. Thanks, it's

136
00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:15,760
Speaker 3: been great to chat.

137
00:07:16,040 --> 00:07:17,120
Speaker 2: Yeah, lovely stuff.

138
00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:19,960
Speaker 1: Good on you, Montana and a big congratulations on the win,

139
00:07:20,240 --> 00:07:24,160
Speaker 1: and yeah, big congratulations. Tell Vicki we can't wait to

140
00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:27,360
Speaker 1: see this beautiful portrait. And a big congratulations to her

141
00:07:27,400 --> 00:07:28,920
Speaker 1: on being such a wonderful model.

142
00:07:30,800 --> 00:07:33,040
Speaker 3: I'll definitely pass that on. Good on you.

143
00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:34,080
Speaker 2: Thank you,