Above: Jane, Amy, Steph Selig with the portrait of Geoff Selig
More than 400 IVE Group staff members and customers attended the annual Archibald Prize event at the Art Gallery of NSW last week, which paid tribute to chairman Geoff Selig.
Selig tragically passed away earlier this year while he was on holiday in Barcelona.
“Geoff was third generation family in our business, and he was a pioneer in the industry for over 40 years,” Matt Aiken IVE Group MD, said at the event.
“IVE would not be where it is today without his vision, courage, and passion for our staff and our clients.”
Aitken was joined by Selig’s wife Jane, daughters Steph and Amy (his daughter Sarah was not in attendance as she is based on London), brother Paul, and his wife Gill.
To recognise Selig’s contributions to IVE and the wider industry, Aitken announced the Geoff Selig Scholarship, which will be awarded to three people each year – two people from IVE and one person from the industry.
“These scholarships will provide an opportunity to apply for funding towards professional development,” said Aitken.
“The premise of these scholarships is centred around Geoff’s love of people, our staff, and the industry and his want for people to grow and thrive, as well as the enjoyment he got from seeing people develop and succeed in life. We will announce more details on these scholarships over the coming weeks.”
The event also commemorated the groups’ first Archibald event without Selig, with a portrait of Selig by Sydney artist, Kathrin Longhurst.
“We wanted to commemorate the first Archibald without Geoff – he loved these events and loved coming to them – he instigated these events, and he had more fun at these events that anyone else – he loved them so much. It was great seeing him here having fun. So, we commissioned Kathrin Longhurst to complete a portrait of Geoff.
“Kathrin is a highly respected member of the Sydney arts community and won the 2021 Archibald packing room prize – she has won numerous awards and been a finalist in the Archibald Prize and is the subject of a finalist this year painted by Stephanie Galloway.”
Jane Selig, who accepted the portrait on behalf of the family, said the annual Archibald Prize event was one of his favourite events on the IVE calendar.
“He loved people, he loved art, and he loved a party,” she said.
“This beautiful painting certainly wins the Selig Choice Award, and we are so grateful. Thank you to Kathrin who was commissioned to do the piece – it is amazing and the fact you are an Archibald finalist yourself and deeply involved in the art world means a lot as well.”
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