Entries Sought for 9th Annual National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition

Bunny by Jeffie Brewer (2013/14 Best in Show)

Sculpture artists from across the nation are invited to participate in the ninth annual National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition. Up to 14 sculptures will be juried into the exhibit and compete for cash prizes totaling up to $16,250. The exhibition is presented as a component of the annual North Charleston Arts Festival, to be held May 2-10, 2014. The application is only available online and may be accessed via the link at NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com/apply. Deadline for submissions is Tuesday, February 25, 2014.

Organized and presented by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, this 11 month exhibition offers established and emerging artists the opportunity to display their thought provoking, extraordinary sculptures throughout the picturesque North Charleston Riverfront Park. Set on the banks of the Cooper River, Riverfront Park features ten acres of walking paths, a boardwalk and fountain, an expansive lawn with performance pavilion, children's play areas, and picnic sites. An estimated 50,000 people visit this public park annually to enjoy the amenities located in the heart of the city’s arts community.

Brad Thomas, Director of Residencies & Exhibitions at the McColl Center in Charlotte, NC, will jury this year’s exhibit. Thomas recently served as Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art for Charlotte’s Mint Museum where he led advances in the Museum’s collection. In addition, he organized residencies for Japanese installation artist Motoi Yamamoto and FECUND, the multi-disciplinary work of John W. Love, Jr. Thomas served on the Mecklenburg County Public Art Commission for five years and was chair of that commission from 2008-10. Prior to the Mint, Thomas was the director and curator of the Van Every/Smith Galleries at Davidson College. There, he led initiatives to integrate visual art into the learning experience, most notably through the establishment of Davidson’s Campus Sculpture Program, which features major outdoor installations by Magdalena Abakanowicz, Antony Gormley, Juame Plensa, Joel Shapiro, and William Tucker. He also produced exhibitions and publications on Magdalena Abakanowicz, Ewan Gibbs, Herb Jackson, Robert Lazzarini, Reverend McKendree Robbins Long, and Joel Shapiro. Thomas’ partnership with the College Writing Program in 2012 led to the release of Davidson Collects: 100 Writers Respond to Art, the first interdisciplinary book on Davidson College’s permanent art collection.

The 9th Annual National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition will be on display May 1, 2014, through March 24, 2015, at North Charleston Riverfront Park, located at 1001 Everglades Avenue in North Charleston. A free public reception and announcement of awards will be held at the Charleston Area Convention Center on Friday, May 2, 2014. For more information about the North Charleston Arts Festival, the National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition, or other exhibition opportunities, contact the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department at (843) 740-5854, email culturalarts@northcharleston.org, or visit NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com.

National artists to present concurrent solo exhibitions in North Charleston June 3-30

"Tractor at Bayonet Farm" by Jimmy Leslie (right) and "Diver with yacht" by John A. Malveto (left)

The City of North Charleston’s Cultural Arts Department is pleased to announce that landscapes by Jimmy Leslie of Shrewsbury, New Jersey, and stain paintings by John A. Malveto of Walker, Louisiana, will be on exhibit at the North Charleston City Gallery from June 3-30, 2013.

Road Trip – Landscape Paintings by Jimmy Leslie
In an effort to continually push boundaries and experiment, Jimmy Leslie works with diverse modes of expression. His body of work includes landscapes, portraits, and collages in oil, acrylic, watercolor, and mixed media. This particular exhibit, Road Trip – Landscape Paintings by Jimmy Leslie, features scenes from the artist’s travels painted in oil and acrylic. “I love to get out of the studio whenever possible to take part in the tradition of plein air painting,” Leslie says. “There’s something about hitting the road with a small paint box in the same way the Impressionists did; just my supplies and a desire to connect with nature.” Jimmy’s landscape paintings capture scenes of places both near and far, many of which are visited due to the travel associated with his position as Resident Artist and Sr. Technical Services Director at Colart Americas, Inc. Sometimes the paintings made on location stand on their own and other times they form the basis for larger paintings that begin to push the boundaries of representation and even become non-representational images. The paintings that stem from these studies often share the qualities of topography and form becomes dictated by color, rather than the reverse. “Ultimately I look for these images to reference the locations they are based on rather than a strict verbatim translation; in this way they become a record which is much more personal,” he explains.

Jimmy Leslie received an MFA from the Graduate School of Figurative Art of the New York Academy of Art and owned and operated the Leslie Art Studio in 2006 and 2007. After almost 15 years of teaching in the Art & Design departments of Monmouth University, St John’s University, and Brookdale Community College, as well as working with gifted students in the Monmouth County Arts High School program, Jimmy left the academic world behind. In January 2009 he began his role as Resident Artist and Sr. Technical Services Director at Colart Americas, Inc., the North American distributor of Winsor & Newton and Liquitex paints. As an artist with ColArt, he is involved with product testing and development and runs the Artist Outreach program. His landscapes, figurative work, and mixed media collages have been exhibited throughout New Jersey, as well as New York, Oregon, Texas, Nebraska, Idaho, Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. His work has most recently been seen at The Currier Museum Art Center (Manchester, NH), The NJ Resources HQ, (Howell, NJ), The Limner Gallery (Hudson, NY), the new Joan and Robert Rechnitz Hall on the campus of Monmouth University (West Long Branch, NJ), and the Paper World Art Material Trade Show (Frankfurt, Germany).

Recent Paintings by John A. Malveto
In Recent Paintings by John A. Malveto, the artist presents a collection of abstract works involving the resiliency of humanity versus nature and their eternal conflict to coexist harmoniously. Malveto’s pieces are autobiographical in nature, thereby enabling him the opportunity to integrate personal iconography within the compositions. His works include a combination of visually energetic surfaces created through his own unique approach to “stain painting.” Malveto’s process involves applying multiple stages of poured and brushed acrylic paint to numerous sheets of glass. Stencils are used to cut out shapes from the paint once it has dried. The shapes correspond to a detailed pencil composition created on a canvas. The cut-out shapes of paint are glued to the canvas, section by section, resulting in a finished painting whose effect could not be achieved any other way. “This form of painting is so unusual that I know of no other contemporary artist who employs it,” Malveto says. “By utilizing this unique procedure I feel it has provided greater control of my visual expression. In addition this experience redefines the concept of stain painting.”

John Malveto received his Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Park College in Missouri in 1967. He studied painting and drawing at the University of Rhode Island in 1974, and received his Masters of Fine Arts in painting and sculpture from Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona in 1976. Malveto has taught at many universities from New York to California to China and has been a professor at the Louisiana State University School of Art since 1983. He has been represented by numerous galleries, and participated in many solo and group exhibitions, earning multiple awards. Presently he is showing with the Kodner Gallery in St. Louis, Missouri.

The North Charleston City Gallery is situated in the common areas of the Charleston Area Convention Center, located at 5001 Coliseum Drive in North Charleston. Parking and admission are free during regular Convention Center operating hours, 9:00am – 5:00pm daily. The gallery is staffed on Friday, Saturday, and Monday only. Inquiries regarding the artists or purchase information may be directed to the North Charleston Cultural Arts Department at (843) 740-5854. For information on additional exhibits, programs, and events, visit the Cultural Arts section of the City’s website at http://bit.ly/culturalarts.

North Charleston Receives National Award for Sustainable Urban Revitalization project

North Charleston, SC, was chosen as one of eight cities to receive the Award for Municipal Excellence from the National League of Cities (NLC).  The city was honored Friday, December 3 at a ceremony during NLC’s annual Congress of Cities & Exposition in Denver, Colo.  North Charleston was chosen as a Silver winner in the 50,001 to 150,000 population category for the Sustainable Urban Revitalization project.

The Sustainable Urban Revitalization project in North Charleston brought together public, private and non-governmental organizations to help revitalize the city impacted by the closure of the Charleston Naval Base.  The project has rejuvenated the East Montague Business District, which includes the first LEED Platinum building in South Carolina; created the Oak Terrace Preserve, a green housing development; and several new public schools including the LEED-certified North Charleston Elementary School and Charleston County’s School for the Arts.  North Charleston’s project has benefitted the community through increased economic development projects, new sustainable neighborhoods and the restoration of historic buildings and streetscapes.

Read the full award application here.

“The City of North Charleston has worked diligently to transform its urban core into a sustainable city center to increase the overall quality of life of our residents.  Over the past few years, we have seen a welcomed influx of young families, complemented by new businesses to provide an economic boost for our City,” said Mayor R. Keith Summey.  “North Charleston will continue burgeoning to become an even greater place to live, work, and play.”

As a Silver winner, North Charleston will receive an award of $1,000, which will be donated to the community non-profit of the city’s choice, the Sustainability Institute.

“We congratulate North Charleston and its Sustainable Urban Revitalization project for receiving an Award for Municipal Excellence,” said Donald J. Borut, NLC executive director.  “North Charleston’s program has improved the quality of life for all citizens by developing a creative solution to a pressing local problem.”

The Awards for Municipal Excellence recognize city programs that improve the quality of life in local communities through creative collaboration, excellence in city government and best practices in municipal policy.

Additional information regarding the awards program can be found at http://www.nlc.org/ame.aspx.

The National League of Cities is the nation’s oldest and largest organization devoted to strengthening and promoting cities as centers of opportunity, leadership and governance. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities, towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans.

Stall High School wins national Jefferson Award

Last week at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, and before a crowd of over 500, RB Stall High School received the Bronze Medallion for the Students in Action National Award For Outstanding Service By a High School as a result of effective implementation of the Jefferson Awards system and more importantly, their outstanding track record and culture of service within their high school.

The Jefferson Awards for Public Service was founded in 1972 by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft, Jr. and Sam Beard to create a Noble Prize for public and community service. The mission of the Jefferson Awards is to encourage and honor individuals for their achievements and contributions through public and community service.

The Jefferson Awards Students in Action program was created in partnership with Deloitte with the aggressive goal of passing the tradition of volunteerism along to our youth and helping double volunteerism in America’s high schools. The strategy is to create Jefferson Awards youth leadership teams in each high school that celebrate great volunteers, inspire others to get involved and help raise additional resources to expand volunteer activities in areas of need.

For more information about the Jefferson Awards and Students in Action, visit http://www.jeffersonawards.org