Entry from student prizewinner, Chris Holmes. Courtesy Northumbria University Gallery

“That guy with the handlebar moustache. The lady with the bags under her eyes. Those wingnut ears…”

Organisers of the Cravens Art Prize played with lots of metaphors for facial features in the call for entries for the 2007 prize. The brief: creatively express how you see people, and be in with a chance of winning a cash reward in the eighth year of north-east based competition.

The Northumbria University Gallery is hosting the exhibition of winning entries and other submissions until March 2 2007, featuring some striking paintings, photography and sculpture among them, by professional and amateur artists.

Sebastien Trend, Imagining Nothing. Courtesy Northumbria University Gallery

First prize overall went to 20-year-old Sebastien Trend, who is studying fine art at Northumbria University. His painting, Imagining Nothing, depicted his girlfriend, her face smeared with shower gel to give the skin a viscous, melting appearance.

The art student was gobsmacked to hear that he’d won the £1,000 prize, and is particularly pleased to now be able to afford a university art trip to Berlin.

Andrew Pearce, Wasters. Courtesy Northumbria University Gallery

The second prize overall went to Andrew Pearce for the touching sculptural work, Wasters. The piece features lots of tiny Japanese pottery Raku figures – the title refers to the fact that these are the ones that have not survived the kilning process. Andrew is loth to throw away the imperfect figures that cannot be sold as part of a pair as they are supposed to be, hence the touching nature of Wasters.

Andrew lives in Newcastle, where he works as a research administrator and devotes his spare time to practicing the ancient Japanese pottery technique. He has vowed to spend his £250 winnings on a quarter of a tonne of the special clay needed for the Raku figures.

Jacky Longstaff, Leek Show. Courtesy Northumbria University Gallery

The £500 prize for a photography entry went to Newcastle photography lecturer Jacky Gosforth. Her picture, Leek Show, is part of a long-running project exploring community spirit and nostalgia surrounding country shows.

The best student entry, winning £250, was judged to be a portrait by Chris Holmes of Tynemouth, a 52-year-old mature student who has only been practicing photography for a couple of years. She spent 12 weeks with the Panama Swimming Club, where she obtained a strong image of a hardy swimmer going in for her thrice weekly dip in the chilling North Sea.

“In our industry we are privileged to work with some of the finest creative talent in the North East, and the entries we receive each year through the Cravens Art Prize competition are testament to the wealth of untapped potential out there in the region,” commented Chris Hill, Managing Director of Cravens. Cravens are a Newcastle-based creative communications agency.