Jurors Announced for 2011 Show

As spring starts to show it's lovely colours, so does Art in the County. This annual art exhibit is gearing up for it's 18th year showcasing artistic talent in Prince Edward County.  


Surrounded with inspiration; from the vast beaches, busy wildlife and the ahh moments as you drive through the countryside, it is no wonder the artwork continues to wow and inspire us. With the abundance of wonderful artwork submitted to this show, it is the task of three reputable jurors to whittle down the selection.


This year is no exception; Jan Allen, Linda Jansma and George Walker will be solely responsible for the content of the 2011 show, the Jurors' Choice Awards and Honourable Mentions. 

Jan Allen is Chief Curator/Curator of Contemporary Art at the Agnes Etherington Art Centre and an adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Art and in Cultural Studies at Queen’s University, Kingston. Since 1992, she has organized over 100 exhibitions and published widely. Allen’s independent critical writing has been published in Prefix Photo, C Magazine, Artext, and Poliester. 

Linda Jansma has been the Curator of The Robert McLaughlin Gallery since 1994. She completed an Honours BA at Queen’s University and a MA at the University of East Anglia. She has curated and produced numerous exhibitions that have travelled nationally and has written essays for catalogues dealing with both historical and contemporary art.

George Walker has taught Book Arts at the Ontario College of Art and Design since 1990. He started Columbus Street Press in 1985 with his wife, Michelle and in 2000 they renamed it Biting Dog Press. George's award-winning illustrations are alive with their own frenetic energy and reflect his wide visual scholarship and adept technical innovation. George is completing his Masters degree in Communication and Culture and holds the position of Associate Professor, Faculty of Art at OCAD University.

Share the Canvas

On June 24th, Art in the County invited visitors to express their inner creativity and "Share the Canvas" outside of the exhibition, at the corner of Ross and King Street in Picton. 
A large blank canvas was set up between 4pm to 7pm where all were encouraged to pick up a paint brush and add their creative flare.

Organizer Brandy Gale and assistant Anne Sheasby were very pleased with the turn out, both young and old participated creating a vibrant piece that will be on display and available for bidding. The silent auction for this piece closes July 4th.
photo credits, John Oster & Doug Sloane

Juror's Award Winners Announced

Art in the County 2010 opened last night with great fanfare as the 2010 Juror's Award Winners were announced.  The 2010 Jurors; Pat Durr, John de Visser and George Wale had a tough decision when they were asked to choose this year's  winners as there were so many marvelous pieces to choose from.
After much deliberation, the winners were decided and are listed below in no particular order along with the Juror's comments:


2010 Art In the County Award Winners

Lyne Lusk

Juror’s Award
Passage
Fibre
Gorgeous stitching and loved the subtlety of your colour selection.
Very modern/
contemporary work in a traditional craft form.

Janine Kinch
Juror’s Award

Land of the Rising Sun
Mixed Media Monotype
Striking version of collage.
Fabric and paper combination is marvellous.
Excellent work!

Kyle Lane
Juror’s Award


Ort Chair
Cherry

So sinuous and elegant.
Original design.
Good details, fine work.

　

Claudia Jean McCabe
Juror’s Award

Adagio
Acrylic
Fantastic balance and composition.
Dynamic and dramatic - powerful piece.

　

Carol Burrill
Juror’s Award

Passion
Jewellery
Very beautiful sculptural piece.
Exquisitely appealing.

Celia Sage
Honourable Mention

Exultate (Zinnlas) II
Oil & Gold Leaf on Canvas
Exotic jungle and jumble of forms 
and emotionally compelling.

Danielle Reddick
Honourable Mention

Strawberry Field
Wire and Various Threads
Gorgeous subtle colour changes.
Terrific patterns and texture.

Andrew Csafordi
Honourable Mention

Dawn Shadow
Encaustic
Original approach and technique.
Wonderful fractured surface.


Amélie Koning de Bourbon
Honourable Mention

Petroglyphs II
Chine Collé
Intimate scale. Must take the time to look, then we see the depth and details. Delightful.

Milé Murtanovski

Honourable Mention

Ashley Reading
Watercolour
Strong Composition.
Extraordinary technique - handles media very well.
Good observation of detail and focus.

　

　 

Gallery Walk, Live Music & Share the Canvas

Art in the County exhibition, now in its 17th year, is a highlight of the summer  season in Prince Edward County, attracting some 2500 visitors to the show last year.

New this year, is the addition of a Gallery Walk which will take creativity to the streets of Picton with 12 venues participating for all to enjoy and Live Entertainment with Naomi Garrett on June 24th and Ken Hudson on July 1st from 5pm - 7pm. 

Prince Edward County artist and Art In The County Committee member/volunteer Brandy Gale will host a Share the Canvas project at the gallery space June 24th 4pm - 7pm. Visitors are encouraged to pick up a brush and paint whatever they like on the large blank canvas, which will then be auctioned off.

  

Two beautiful pieces of art have been donated for this years raffle prizes, a stunning blown glass vase by Mark Armstrong and a vibrant acrylic painting by Dayna Law. 

A ceramic sculpture by Florence Chik-Lau will also be on silent auction, drop by and place your bid on this adorable piece.

One of Prince Edward Countyʼs biggest art shows - Art in the County will open June 18th at Pictonʼs Old Town Hall and is open daily from 10am to 5pm with extended hours on Thursdays till 7pm. Show runs until July 4th, admission is free. For more information go to www.artinthecounty.com

Experience Rules Art in the County

Each year, Art in the County displays the fabulous work of County artists and artisans.  All of the artwork displayed is carefully chosen by three distinguished and experienced art experts who are professionally qualified jurors.  This year is no exception; Pat Durr, George Wale and John de Visser will be solely responsible for the content of the 2010 show, the Jurors' Choice Awards and Honourable Mentions.

Pat Durr


For over 40 years, Pat Durr has been dedicated to the creation of visual art in a variety of media, ranging from drawing, painting and installation, to video and the web.  Recipient of numerous awards, her works are found in public, private and corporate collections in Canada, USA, England and Israel. Pat is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

  

George Wale   

Currently the Director of Programs for the Burlington Art Centre, George is responsible for the planning, implementation, marketing, advertising, and evaluation of all arts programming for the Art Centre; including twenty temporary exhibitions annually, education related to exhibitions, studio courses and outreach services, permanent collection of contemporary Canadian ceramics, and guild related exhibitions and workshops.

 John de Visser

A resident of Cobourg, John is a Photograher and Author of numerous books and publications.  His outstanding collections include "Newfoundland Souvenir," "Spirit of the Garden," "Rideau," "At the Water's Edge," "Summer Cottages," "Muskoka," "Georgian Bay," "Grand River Reflections," "Credit River Valley," and "Thousand Islands." In 1994, John was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Canadian Association of Photographers and Illustrators in Communication.

Innovation Designs Show

Now in its 17th year, Art in the County, is a first rate juried art show and sale that has flourished with the help of many very dedicated volunteers.  Don Pinder, one of these volunteers, has chaired the organizing committee for Art in the County for five years and has designed the show for ten years. Don is a graduate of the Ontario College of Art and Design, known for his innovative multi-level images of architectural details and his distinctive pottery and photographs. 

Don is an active member of the cultural commmunity and has created logos for Art in the County, the Prince Edward County Jazz Festival, the Command Performance Choir and did the design work for the Regent Theatre logo, he has also created posters for a variety of events around Prince Edward County. Don is Head of Design at the co-op Gallery 121 in Belleville where he participates regularly in exhibitions; his work has also been exhibited at the Ottawa Art Gallery, the O’Connor Gallery in Toronto, the Picturesque Gallery in Napanee, the Belleville Library Art Gallery and printed in local calendars and newspapers. His work is included in private collections in Toronto and across North America. Don has received a number of awards in juried shows and Art in the County is very fortunate to have such talent on our team.

A more recent member to the committee is Kathleen O'Donoghue who was been on the committee for two and half years and was first introduced by Eve McCrimmon.  Kathleen has lived in Prince Edward County for twenty three years and during that time has dabble a little with watercolour painting.  I asked her if she would ever consider entering her work in the show and she humbly replied "by no stretch of the imagination would I consider myself an artist!"  Kathleen is currently responsible for various aspects of the raffle that takes place at the end of each show.  This raffle draw is very popular due to the generous contribution of original works of art by local artists. 

A passion for the Arts

The passion for Art in the County is reflected in all of the amazing volunteers that help make this show better each and every year.
  
Two of these wonderful people are Evelyn & Doug Sloane who have been very active volunteers within the community and have been working with Art in the County since moving here 14 years ago.  I sat down recently with Evelyn and asked what was her most memorable "Art in the County" moment. Evelyn perked up and talked about "when an artist came in expecting her work to be declined and it was accepted by the panel of jurors, the artist was so shocked she broke down and cried, her piece sold on opening night!"  Evelyn & Doug's interest in the arts has not stopped with Art in the County, they are both founders of Scenes of Sandbanks and beyond, now in it's 11th year and co-founders of the Art of Flight, in it's 3rd year. These two annual art shows and sales also showcase the artistic talent in Prince Edward County as well as help the Prince Edward Bird Point Observatory and the Friends of Sandbanks two non-profit organizations within the community. 


Another long standing volunteer is Gael Moore, who began helping with the show in the mid 1990's.  After a few years hiatus, Gael is now back on the committee and says "it's always enjoyable, never dull and whatever their involvement the volunteers are enthusiastic and wonderful people with whom to work."

Brandy Gale, the most recent addition to the Art in the County committee is a Plein air painter who came to Prince Edward County in 2004 after falling in love with the landscape and lifestyle here. You may have seen her out and about, painting on location at Sandbanks, Lake on the Mountain or Point Petre. She volunteered as a gallery attendant for Art in the County for a couple of years, and then was invited to sit on the AITC Committee for 2010. Brandy is keen on bringing social media and the event together to reach a new demographic. Art in the County now has a Facebook presence, is Tweeting on Twitter, and blogging. Brandy's web site is http://brandygale.com and you can find her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/BrandyGale.