Multi award-winning artist Ben Winspear will be the judge of the King Valley Art Show 2025 being held at King River Brewing in the King Valley from November 1 to 3.

The Melbourne-based artist and tutor who works in both oil and watercolour, has also been a supporter and entrant of the show since its inception.

Ben said as a young, up-and-coming artist he used to attend retreats at King River Camp where his tutor encouraged students to enter the local art show, back when it was getting off the ground.

He then went on to run his own art retreats at the camp, which he did for nine years until 2024, becoming familiar and fond of the landscape, the arts community and the now significant event.

"Because I have the connection to the King Valley, I like to support what they do," he said.

"It’s a first class, quality show, so I'm happy to be part of it.

"Art, wine and food go together, so they get good support from sponsors, artists and locals too."

As an artist, Ben's two loves are portraiture/figurative work, and the Australian landscape, and he regularly paints from life and "en plein air" (outdoors).

His work encapsulates a wide range of subject matter - anything that inspires him at the time - running the full spectrum from purely representational through to abstraction, using his own unique and personal visual language to describe the world around him.

Passing on his knowledge to those who attend his classes and workshops is Ben’s other passion, taking students outdoors to paint in places like Powers Lookout, instructing them in the traditions of observational drawing and painting.

While he has won multiple awards in the King Valley Art Show - last year picking up the award for best local scene - this year he was invited to judge the show, an honour he was delighted to accept.

Ben said having his own private art school, conducting workshops and judging art shows throughout Victoria and New South Wales, means he has a good understanding of painting, drawing and presentation.

"I like to think I have a bit of an idea of what is quality - which is a large part of it - and while I know what I like, I can also see what is good beyond that, so I weigh up a number of criteria," he said.

"It is subjective to a degree - different judges are going to pick different things - but I will go around and see what jumps out at me emotionally, assess it technically and maintain a broad way of looking at it.

"You can have something which is technically proficient, but it's still got to have an emotional connection with the viewer.

"And entering a quality show like this - seeing your painting on the wall and framed against other works - is a success in itself."

Ben will also be conducting en plein air demonstrations at the brewery on Sunday, 2 November at 11am and 2pm, capturing local scenes or perhaps people visiting the brewery.

Ben Winspear will announce the winners of the King Valley Art Show 2025 at the gala opening on Friday, 31 October from 7pm, with tickets $35 (and a return bus from Wangaratta available for $10), available at humanitix.com/2025-king-valley-art-show-gala-opening.

The King Valley Art Show will be open to the public on November 1 and 2 from 10am to 5pm and on Monday, November 3 from 10am to 3pm and entry is $3.