Her winning work, Maria’s Garden, Scheme C, which took three months to complete, is an homage to Brisbane’s disappearing back gardens, many of which are being swallowed up by new developments, extensions and swimming pools. The wire-frame architectural drawing superimposed on the garden in New Farm is a hint of its likely fate.

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“Once she passes away, the land is so valuable that the garden will be gone in 10 minutes,” said Grealy. “It’s really a documentation of her garden and in it you can see the story of her life and that of many immigrants.”

In her artist’s statement, Grealy draws attention to the detail contained in the work and the meaning behind it.

“Maria’s philosophy, ‘waste not, want not,’ is in those details,” she wrote. “Maria has worked hard since she arrived here, a teenager from war-torn Italy. Through hard work and thrift, her garden supplied her family with food.”

Guest judge and NAS alumna Catherine O’Donnell, a Dobell finalist in 2021, said the judges’ decision was unanimous.

“Jane’s work is beautifully executed, very skilful but also expanding drawing to a different level with her layering of architectural elements,” she said. “We did look at lots of different works. The standard was very high, so it was tough decision but we came back to this one.

“It’s about so many things – the balance between nature and the built environment, about time passing, the past, present and future. The work looks outstanding in the gallery – it’s very well deserved.”

The biennial Dobell Prize for Drawing was established in 1993 and has been presented by the National Art School since 2019. In that year, photo-media artist Justine Varga was selected winner by judge Ben Quilty.