COTTESLOE.- Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe presents Perth-based artist Jina Lee as the recipient of the 2018 Rio Tinto WA Emerging Sculptor Mentorship.

The $10,000 Rio Tinto WA Emerging Sculptor Mentorship Program was introduced in 2015 to encourage professional mentorships between emerging sculptors and established practitioners over a 12 month period with a number of face-to-face meetings.

Jina selected French artist Nicolas Bertoux as her mentor for the program due to his vast experience in public sculpture, specialising in stone. Jina travelled to Nicolas’ studio, Artco, in Seravezza, Tuscany for five weeks to develop her skills in stone carving for large scale sculptures. The beautiful Carrara marble work she created during her time in Italy will be shipped to Australia to exhibit in Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 2018.

On receiving the mentorship, Jina said, “Rio Tinto’s WA Emerging Sculptor Mentorship provided me with a once in a lifetime opportunity to develop my skills and knowledge in the one of the best places in the world for stone carving. It was a dream to be able to work on marble sculptures in the same town that Michelangelo worked and lived.”

Jina Lee is a stone sculptor based in Perth who has exhibited several times previously in Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe from 2015 - 2017. Her focus is on simplified organic shapes sculpted into a variety of stones, primarily using marble or granite. Jina began her study of sculpture at Kaywon Arts School in South Korea in 1999 and completed her Master of Fine Arts, majoring in Stone Sculpture at Kookmin University in 2009, South Korea before moving to Perth in 2013. Since arriving in Australia, Jina has exhibited in a number of important group exhibitions including: Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi (2015), the City of Melville Sculpture Walk (2014, 2015, 2016) and Swell Sculpture Festival (2014).

Jina has participated at international sculpture symposiums in Japan and produced sculptures for public spaces and private collections in South Korea, Australia and Switzerland. She has been an artist in residence at Greg James Sculpture Studio Gallery, J SHED in Fremantle WA since 2014 and is supported by a local stone business.

Rio Tinto Iron Ore chief executive Chris Salisbury said, “Rio Tinto is proud to provide this valuable opportunity to Jina through the $10,000 Rio Tinto WA Emerging Sculpture Mentorship Program, now in its third year. This important program helps foster the creativity of Western Australia whilst shaping our next generation of artists.”

David Handley, Founding Director, Sculpture by the Sea said, "Jina’s sculptures and her dedication to her craft have impressed many people across Australia. It is wonderful that she has had this opportunity to study abroad and to expand her international network thanks to this support from Rio Tinto. I look forward to seeing fruits of her labour at Cottesloe Beach next March"

Jina will be exhibiting for the fourth time at Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe, which runs from 2-19 March 2018 with an estimated 220,000 local, interstate and international visitors expected over the three week exhibition.