North Charleston Arts Festival Judged Fine Art & Photography Competition Winners Announced

Fine artists and amateur and professional photographers from across the state were invited to participate in the 2013 Judged Fine Art and Judged Photography Competitions & Exhibitions, organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department and presented May 3-11 as a component of the 2013 North Charleston Arts Festival. A total of 168 fine art entries were accepted in the categories of oil, acrylic, watercolor, drawing/pastel, and 2D mixed media. Cash awards totaling $3,250 were made at the sole discretion of the judge, Sara C. Arnold, Curator of Collections at the Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston. After making her selections, Ms. Arnold stated, “The Lowcountry is fortunate to have such an event that displays the talents of our local artists.” She continued, “All the applicants should be commended for their entries. It is a pleasure to see such variety in both media and in style represented in the competition.”

A total of 230 entries were accepted in photography, which were split into the divisions of Professional/Advanced and Amateur and categorized as color or monochrome. Cash awards totaling $1,450 were awarded by a panel of three judges using the Photographic Society of America Print Guidelines. Each judge evaluated entries as a whole, considering the areas of impact, composition, and technique.

In addition to awards given by the judges, three fine art pieces were selected for City of North Charleston Purchase Awards. These pieces will be added to the City of North Charleston’s Permanent Public Art Collection, which is on display within North Charleston City Hall throughout most of the year.

Congratulations to the following winners:

Best in Show – Fine Art
In My Mother’s Arms by Nizar/Kelvin Blufton

City of North Charleston Purchase Awards
The Stretch by Bob Graham
Due South by Elliot B. West
Green Wave by Angela Smith

Fine Art - Acrylic
1st Place – Festival Fiddle by Brenda Gilliam
2nd place – Study in Public by Jean Spencer
3rd Place – Insomnia by David Helmerick
Honorable Mention – Play On by Pedro Rodriguez
Honorable Mention – Ishmael by Amanda McLenon
Honorable Mention – Against the Odds by Jack Vanderpol

Fine Art - Oil
1st Place – The Promise by Blaine Tailer-Kimball Dixon
2nd Place – Waiting by Sherri Bardsley
3rd Place – Gullah Woman by Denny Stevenson
Honorable Mention – Strolling the Gardens by Sandra J. Booker
Honorable Mention – Decelerating by Sally Accetta
Honorable Mention – A in Green by Judy McSween
Honorable Mention – Street Crossing by Peter Scala

Fine Art - Drawing/Pastel
1st place – Second Glance by Bob Graham
2nd Place – Blended Trees by Dolores Hayes Lott
3rd Place – Pitcher & Pine Cone by Sherry Bevins
Honorable Mention – Live Oak by Nancy Davidson
Honorable Mention – Fishing Spot by Mary Brigman

Fine Art - Watercolor 
1st Place – Kevina by Lynda Lawrence
2nd Place – Abandoned by Becky Taylor
3rd Place – Daybreak in the Town of Two Harbors by Dorothy Shromoff
Honorable Mention – Cosmos in Bloom by Becky Taylor
Honorable Mention – Evil Eye by Charlotte Holman

Fine Art - 2D Mixed Media
1st Place – Ship High in Transit by Denise Greer
2nd Place – All the Earth by Deborah Neal
3rd Place – Equilibrium at Risk by Lara Neece
Honorable Mention - Home Grown by Linda Wasielewski
Honorable Mention – City Jail by Shawn Allison
Honorable Mention – See Through by Paige Duvall
Honorable Mention – Resting in Style by Don Roberts

Professional Photography - Color
1st Place – Bride of Magnolia by Donnie Smith
2nd Place – Daughters of Confederacy Building by Vanessa Kauffmann
3rd Place – Forster’s (Tern) Flight 39 by Raymond Colin Murray
Honorable Mention – Relics of the Past by Raymond Colin Murray
Honorable Mention – Edwin S. Fishing Pier at Twilight by Raymond Colin Murray

Professional Photography - Monochrome
1st Place – Studebaker by Peter Ingrasselino
2nd Place – Got an Itch by Gloria Welch
3rd Place – Abandoned by Vanessa Kauffmann
Honorable Mention – Shem Creek – Rigged & Ready by Chris Rogers

Amateur Photography - Color
1st Place – Snow Ram by Rick Dandridge
2nd Place – Osprey #1 by Andy Reilly
3rd Place – Dolbadarn Castle by Rick Dandridge
Honorable Mention – Henpecked by Jim Miller
Honorable Mention – Bumper Pool by Jim Miller

Amateur Photography - Monochrome
1st Place – Racer by Andy Reilly
2nd Place – Girl with Cup by Mark Melcher
3rd Place – Remembering Italy: Tempi Passati by Gabi Simon
Honorable Mention – Carousel Horse by Kaitlin Carroll
Honorable Mention – French Hugenot Church at Dawn by Douglas A. Fraze
Honorable Mention – Hold on to Faith by Brenda Bihlear

For information about additional exhibition opportunities offered by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, call 843-740-5854, email culturalarts@northcharleston.org, or visit http://bit.lyculturalarts. For details on the North Charleston Arts Festival, visit NorthCharlestonArtsFestival.com.

Entries Sought for 2012 North Charleston Arts Festival Judged Fine Art & Photography Competitions & Exhibitions

Fine artists and professional and amateur photographers ages 18 and up are invited to participate in the annual North Charleston Arts Festival Judged Fine Art and Judged Photography Competitions and Exhibitions, which will be on display throughout the Charleston Area Convention Center Complex May 4-12, 2012. Cash prizes are awarded for winning entries. Details for participation are available for download on the Applications page at www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com. The deadline for submissions is 7:00pm on Thursday, May 3, for photography, and noon on Friday, May 3, for fine art. Entry fees are $5 and $10, respectively.

Fine artists may submit work in 5 categories: Acrylic, Oil, Drawing/Pastel, Watercolor, and Mixed Media. Entries will compete for cash prizes totaling up to $4425. Awards are at the sole discretion of the juror, Kimberly H. Spears. As the Executive Director of the Anderson County Arts Council, Ms. Spears oversees the rotating gallery exhibitions in the Anderson County Arts Center. She has served as juror for art exhibitions around the state. 

Photographers may submit work in the Professional/Advanced division or Amateur division under the categories of Color or Monochrome. Entries will compete for cash prizes totally up to $1450 and are judged using the Photographic Society of America Print Guidelines. Scoring is done by three competent judges in the field of photography who will score entries using the 3-9 range of scores. Each judge will evaluate each entry as a whole, considering the areas of Impact, Composition, and Technique. However, there is no specific weighting or allotment of points for each category. This system is used efficiently and effectively by many councils, at international exhibitions, and by camera clubs. It allows an adequate qualitative separation of entries while lessening the potential for a large number of the higher scoring entries having identical scores. In the event of a tie-breaker, judges will choose the winning entry. 

Awards for both competitions will be announced at an artist reception on Friday, May 4, from 6:00-7:00pm at the Charleston Area Convention Center, located at 5001 Coliseum Drive in North Charleston. Exhibition viewing times are Saturday, May 5, 10:00am – 4:00pm; Sunday, May 6, 2:00pm – 5:00pm; Monday through Friday, May 7-11, 9:00am – 5:00pm; and Saturday, May 12, 9:00am – 12:00pm. 

The North Charleston Arts Festival, scheduled May 4-12, is one of the most comprehensive arts festivals in the Lowcountry, providing thousands of residents & visitors with a fabulous array of performances, exhibitions, and activities. The Main Event, held the first weekend in May, offers free admission and parking to over 40 performances on four stages. Other Main Event activities include exhibitions, a gem and mineral show, an antique show, children’s activities, art and crafts booth, and food court. The Arts Festival continues with over 50 free or moderately priced ticketed events throughout the week at various locations and concludes with fireworks over the Cooper River at the Grand Finale at Riverfront Park. 

For more information about the North Charleston Arts Festival, or to download applications for the Judged Fine Art and Photography Competitions and Exhibitions, visit www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com. For more information about other exhibition opportunities, visit http://bit.ly/culturalarts or call the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department office at 843-740-5854.