GOOD news from self-styled late-start artist, former Democrats candidate and prominent Women’s Electoral Lobby member, Julie McCarron-Benson, that she’s made the semi-finals in the $150,000 Doug Moran Portrait Prize.

The acrylic work titled “Ted and Shirl: Grey Nomads” is a portrait of friends of mine attempting to travel all over Australia. “I have tried to present them as though you, the observer, are giving them directions,” McCarron-Benson told “Citynews” today. She has also shown us her portrait of broadcaster Elaine Harris, entered in the Portia Geach Prize.

The artist, who came to Canberra from Canowindra to work in the Commonwealth Public Service, graduated from ANU with a BA. She was an unsuccessful Australian Democrats candidate in the 1989 ACT elections, the 1990 Federal Elections and the 1992 ACT elections, and also opened businesses and Michele’s Pantry and Cafétopia, as well as producing gourmet foods like Mum’s famous Ginger Honey and the Political Spice Range, curries and spice mixes with a political theme. In 2006 she started producing the ‘Our Canberra limited edition’ calendar.

By this time McCarron-Benson had taken up landscape drawing in an adult education art class at the ANU School of Art, later joining Canberra Art Workshop and studying ‘lithography at Megalo. In 2008 she held her first solo exhibition.

The Doug Moran Portrait Prize is run by the Moran Arts Foundation. 30 finalists will be selected from the semi-finalists and will form the 2015 Doug Moran National Portrait Prize exhibition, to run at Juniper Hall, Paddington, NSW, from October 29 to February 14. This year’s judges are Angus Trumble from the National Portrait Gallery and artist Rick Amor.