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It was a picture of acclaimed young Australian pianist Simon Tedeschi that first caught Cherry Hood's eye. She went to one of his concerts, at the Art Gallery of New South Wales , and then asked him to sit for her. "Although I don't normally do portrait/likenesses of people, I usually paint boys or adolescent males," she says. "Simon is only 20 and he has blue eyes and the look that suits the way I make images. The eyes are always the focus of my paintings. I want them to reflect the gaze of the viewer and I prefer the way paler eyes both reflect light and have a differentiation between the pupil and iris. When I met him, it turned out that he is particularly empathetic, easy going and very sensitive artistically. He saw my work and he understood what I was doing."

Hood decided to paint him topless because, she says, "he is always portrayed in formal clothes and often with a piano as well. Images of him are usually more about his playing than about him as a person let alone him as a sensual body. Also, at that time I was finishing a series of portraits of boys for my show at Mori Gallery. Simon saw these works and agreed to pose for me in the same way.

"It was quite easy to get him because he has strong characteristics. I think it does look like him, if not at his most rested. He keeps up a rigorous international performance schedule and lives between Sydney and London. He was suffering jet lag or in 'post concert letdown' when he sat for this painting. When he last saw the work he said, 'love the whiskers, remind me to stop over in Bangkok next time.'"

Hood attained a Master of Visual Art at Sydney College of the Arts in 2000. Her thesis investigated gender politics in art and cultural mores and taboos surrounding the representation of the male body. Hood has since had two solo exhibitions at Mori Gallery. Prior to this, she had countless solo and group shows at universityA university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees. A university provides both tertiary and quaternary education. University is derived from the Latin universitas meaning corporation since the first medieval and artist-run spaces. Her works are in many collections in Australia and overseas. Hood works in the unlikely medium of watercolourWatercolor is a painting technique making use of water-soluble pigments that are either transparent or opaque and are formulated with gum to bond the pigment to the paper. Although the grounds used in watercolor painting are varied, the most common is pap to produce her uncanny portraits, which are most frequently anonymousAnonymity is the state of not being identifiable within a set, called the "anonymity set". When referring to human beings, we say that a person is anonymous when the identity of that person is not known. Being anonymous usually is a result of not disclosi composites. She was a finalist in the 2001 Archibald Prize with her water colour of art lecturer Matthÿs Gerber.

The Archibald Prize was established through the bequest of Jules Francois Archibald in 1921Events January 2 The first religious radio broadcast ( KDKA AM in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) January 2 Spanish liner Santa Isabel sinks off Villa Garcia 244 dead January 2 DeYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park San Francisco opens. January 20 Republic of Turke. It aims to encourage portraiture by supporting artists and celebrating the memory of great Australians. The Archibald Prize is judged by the Trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Jules Francois Archibald's primary aim, through his bequest of 1919Events January January 1 Edsel Ford succeeds his father as head of the Ford Motor Company January 5 Spartacist uprising Socialist demonstrations in Berlin turn into attempted communist revolution with Spartacist League in the forefront January 9 Spartacus, was to foster portraiture, as well as support artists, and perpetuate the memory of great Australians.

Amongst many controversiesA controversy is a contentious dispute, a disagreement over which parties are actively arguing. Controversies can range from private disputes between two individuals to large-scale social upheavals. It is the nature of controversies that they cannot be co, these original aims have certainly been fulfilled and indeed many believe the Archibald Prize has done more than any other single event to stimulate and sustain public interestPublic interest is a term used to denote political movements and organizations that are in the public interest supporting general public and civic causes, in opposition of private and corporate ones (particularistic goals). The public interest can also me in the art of portrait painting in Australia.

The Archibald Prize was first awarded in 1921Events January 2 The first religious radio broadcast ( KDKA AM in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) January 2 Spanish liner Santa Isabel sinks off Villa Garcia 244 dead January 2 DeYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park San Francisco opens. January 20 Republic of Turke, and over the years some of Australia's prominent artists have won, including George Lambert ( 1927Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 See also 1927 in aviation 1927 in film 1927 in literature 1927 in mu), William Dobell ( 1943, 1948 and 1959) and Brett Whiteley ( 1976 and 1978). The subjects of Archibald winners have been equally celebrated in their fields and include 'Banjo' Patterson, Margaret Olley, Patrick White and Paul Keating.

The 2002 Archibald Prize was won by Cherry Hood for her huge portrait of pianist Simon Tedeschi..

The Trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales judges the Archibald Prize.

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