The selection for the Archibald Prize almost always stirs up some controversy in Australian art circles. The Hidden Faces of the Archibald presents an alternative selection, providing a unique opportunity for Victorians to see some of the Archibald entrants that didn’t make the official cut.

At the centre of the exhibition is Phillip Barnes’ striking, somewhat mysterious portrait of Claudia Chan Shaw, fashion designer for Vivian Chan Shaw and host of ABC’s The Collectors.

With his beautiful linework and arresting use of black and white shading, Barnes captures Chan Shaw in an elegant, thoughtful pose, gazing into the distance with clasped hands.

“It definitely captures the pensive side of me!” Chan Shaw says. “I think it’s lovely, and I’m so honoured. It’s kind of surreal, because you get used to looking at yourself and seeing photographs of yourself, but seeing a painting - and especially seeing it so large - is very different.”

Barnes approached Chan Shaw late last year with a vision for the portrait in mind. “It’s a really strange connection actually,” he says.

“I’d seen Claudia on TV, and I’d also admired a film from the 1920s from America, and I’d said to a couple of people that Claudia was so much like the woman in this film.”

The woman in the film was an actress named Anna May Wong, who Chan Shaw has also long admired. “She was a Chinese-American actress at a time when you just didn’t have actors from different backgrounds, so she’s
a very important figure in filmmaking,” Chan Shaw explains. “When I was a student, I made a film called Sorry, Wong Number - and in the film, I played Anna May Wong. So when Phillip said, ‘I picture you as Anna May Wong,’ I said, ‘She’s attached to my soul!’ It was perfect.”

Throughout the painting process, the image and essence of the two women became so intertwined that Barnes even had to step back. “I had to go through and read Anna May’s life story again to remember which bits were
Claudia’s story, and which were Anna May’s,” he says.

Almost every day as the image evolved, he would send Chan Shaw photos. “He kept sending me pictures and I’d go ‘Oh! There’s my lips!’ and more and more as he went along,” she says. “It was very exciting. We did a photographic study first, like most portrait artists do. That part’s not hard, but then the next stage when it becomes a painting is very foreign to me,
and it was amazing.”

This isn’t Claudia’s first experience of seeing herself on canvas. Last year, Bruno Grasswill painted her for the Archibald - a bright, captivating portrait against a red background that captures Chan Shaw in an elated, somewhat
whimsical mood.

“I’ve known Bruno for about eight years,” Chan Shaw says.
“It’s a completely different painting, very graphic and simplified, while this one has a lot more detail in it and is more mystic. But both capture the essence of me, which is wonderful.”
Bruno’s painting is currently hanging in his home. This one, Chan Shaw will be keeping.

The Hidden Faces exhibition is known in art circles as the Victorian Salon des Refusés, and is a part of a tradition started by the French Impressionists of the 1860s, who held a breakaway exhibition from the reactionary French Academy. The inaugural Salon des Refusés was held in 1864 and included works by acclaimed artists such as Edmund Manet and Paul Cezanne.

Some of the prominent Victorian artists whose work is featured in Hidden Faces include Matthew, Quick, Geoff La Gerche, Jim van Geet, Helen Edwards and Jacquie Blight. Their subjects range from other artists to musicians, sportspeople, academics and comedians, including Wil Anderson, The Seekers, Greta Bradman, Stephanie Gilmore, Prof. Patrick McGorry, Alan Kohler and Daniel Kowalski.

Curator Jacqueline Taylor is thrilled to showcase these artworks in such an elegant and welcoming lobby space. “This year’s exhibition is the best yet,” she says. “The glorious Hilton Melbourne, South Wharf is ideal to exhibit these outstanding works by Victorian artists.”

Chan Shaw agrees that the Salon des Refuses is a great opportunity for the public to see a diverse selection of artwork that may not otherwise have such prominent exposure.

“When the selection is made for the Archibald, there is always going to be controversy over certain choices,” she says. “I think the winner this year is very deserving- it’s a fantastic portrait. But this is an opportunity to show
what else was there.

“Most people agree that the Salon des Refusés is often a better selection than was actually chosen for the Archibald. So it’s good to see both sides of it.”

The Hidden Faces of the Archibald 2011 Presented by OzLink Entertainment
Hilton Melbourne South Wharf, Until September 1, 2011
Free of charge - open all day, every day