Date/Time
Date(s) - 04/25/2025 - 05/16/2025
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Location
Bowen Arts Center
Categories
JOIN US for our huge exhibition – EARTH to Bowen now on display from April 26 to May 16! HOURS at the Bowen are TUES to FRI 10AM – 4PM, and SAT Noon to 4PM.
Our esteemed Judge, Amanda Shelnutt, provided us with her in-depth review of her outstanding choices for cash prizes as provided by the Bowen. Every year, the Bowen endeavors to bring the creative community together for healthy competitions and comradery. Get ready to open your mind and wake up your emotions.
The EARTH to Bowen show is a spectacular display of 97 photographic and fine art works selected from 159 entries from all over North Georgia. These entries represent an extremely wide range of artistic skill and ability. To select items to be in the exhibit, there is a review of over-all artistic excellence of all entries. To determine that artistic excellence, these components were considered heavily: composition/design, focal point, use of light/color, originality, creativity, feeling, and choice of subject matter. When a work is not selected for an exhibit it does not necessarily mean that the jury does not like or respect it. As with any competition, that line falls is always, at least partially, determined by space limitations.
The major goal of the Bowen is to both encourage and challenge artists to continuously strive for artistic excellence. If your entry was not accepted for this exhibit, it should not be taken as a defeat but should be considered simply as a challenge to continue to stretch for a higher level of artistic skill and “eye” for excellence. We encourage artists and photographers to continue their path which leads to the rewards of excellence and to keep “throwing your hat in the ring” of competitions. Competitions are a healthy component of the growth process, creating opportunities to set and achieve goals, setting forth examples to follow, and rewarding excellence! [excerpts from Salon Int’l]. Every year, the Bowen endeavors to bring the creative community together for healthy competitions and comradery. Get ready to open your mind and wake up your emotions.
Juror’s Statement: It is an honor to be asked to judge EARTH to Bowen – Juried Art & Photo Exhibition. When given the challenging task of judging an exhibition, which can be exceedingly difficult, I look at the following criteria (in no particular order):
- A successful composition, display of skill and overall artistic quality.
- An exemplary understanding of technique and execution of medium/media.
- Understanding of theme (if any).
- Originality in concept or selection of subject.
- Individuality of style, a sense of place, sense of humor, or other emotion effectively conveyed in the piece. A sense of joy in creation!
- Proper finishing and readiness to present work for display- including but not limited to framing/mounting, varnishing, finishing the edges of a gallery wrap, etc.
- The small “stuff”- for example, is the work signed? Is it signed in a way that is a distraction from the piece? Is it lacking a signature entirely?
AND HERE ARE OUR WINNERS! CONGRATULATIONS ALL!
1st Place ART- Elizabeth Bame’s Down the Creek, oil painting of a misty river, had lovely light with such a muted palette- this works on so many levels. This is a small but “mighty” painting that grabs your attention from a distance (but feels like a personal experience when you get up close). Nice brushwork. A sense of the familiar, I feel like I’ve visited this place before! Overall, nice execution!
2nd Place ART- Marjorie Yergin’s Raise a Hallelujah of yellow flowers (prismacolor) is such a crisp composition and an unexpected (underside) point of view. A bug’s view of the flowers?! Amazing. I love the colors, layers of pigment and the sharpness of the lines. This is unexpectedly lovely in every way.
3rd Place- Linda Hanks’s Sunset at Folly Beach Park -Moody, Dusky, Beach Scene- the color and light repeatedly drew me to this oil piece as well. A restrained complimentary color palette really sets this skyline off. Is this somewhere on this side of the world, or the other end of the earth, is it dawn, or dusk? So many questions. It can be anywhere and nowhere at the same time, makes it a little “dream-like”.
Two Honorable Mentions in ART: • Arlaine Morrison’s Storm’s Approaching watercolor waves on Yupo-excellent execution, fluidity of application of pigment, nice color variations, looks great far away and up close. • Robin Siever’s Sun Rising acrylic/mixed media diptech abstract figure with birds: I love this piece. The square format, repetition of pattern, size, use of metallics, the movement of the birds, the stillness of the flowers- all of it just works!
1st Place PHOTOGRAPHY- Cindy Crew’s Tenacity with leaves- this was an interesting choice in subject with a mountain in the background, choosing this small cluster of leaves in the foreground would not be what most would focus on at first glance. It is the hyper focus of these leaves, how the light shines through them differently, the stark contrast of light and dark values all playing a part in this work. All components understood the assignment.
2nd Place PHOTOGRAPHY – Crystal Berry’s The Early Bird -Bird Interrupted- He looks like he has been asked a question while in the middle of a time sensitive task and is perturbed. Again, color, light, and here a sense of humor- a great moment captured.
3rd Place PHOTOGRAPHY: Michael Ramy’s Golden Vista Tree and mountain view- There is a lot going on in this composition, but the lines of the trees echoed by the valley cutting across the sky created a dynamic and interesting scene. Beautiful finishing- printing, framing.
Two Honorable Mentions in PHOTOGRAPHY: • Kathy Thompson’s Along 515 Daffodils and house- An interesting “low” vantage point, your eye starts with the flowers and flows through the piece, up the chimney and swirling back around the roof again- I like the dichotomy of old wood and new growth • Tom Ayar’s Mt. Rushmore– I kept coming back to this one. You think you know what to expect from Mt. Rushmore, seeing it on postcards or history books, this was a new viewpoint of a monument I thought I had an understanding of, but clearly didn’t. The rock outcropping and sepia tone, nice!
This year, we have 46 participants from 19 Georgia cities.
- Alpharetta: Patricia Hahn
- Atlanta: Myong Johnston, Arlaine Morrison, Michael Ramy
- Big Canoe: Lynn Mayes, Beth Moreau, Robin Sievers, Beth Westberry, Dennis White
- Bishop: Janet Rodekohr
- Blue Ridge: Kathy Thompson
- Canton: GIdge Dady
- Cumming: Robert Pniewski
- Dahlonega: Win Crannell, Jim Evans, Anne Hope,
- Dawsonville: Kim Ackerman, Cheri Burchard, Jim Eaton, Sruti Vanamala Guntupalli, Shirley Hawkins, Joseph Kovarik, Robin Maloney, Audrey Robinson, Christy Sarratt, Sarah Voiles
- Decatur: Cynthia Frigon
- Douglasville: Crystal Berry, Cindy Crews
- Ellijay: Elizabeth Bame
- Flowery Branch: Daniel Rhoads
- Gainesville: Carly Mihalick, Cynthia Todd
- Gillsville: Vicki Gladden
- Hapeville: Marla Puziss
- Jasper: Kat Alikhan, Tom Ayars, Eric Copeland, Janice Edens, Barbara Edwards, Elizabeth Mauldin, Susanne Schuepbach
- Stone Mountain: Mozelle Funderburk, Linda Hanks
- Toccoa: Lucas Thompson, Gail Watson, Marjorie Yergin
Juror’s Statement from: It is an honor to be asked to judge EARTH to Bowen – Juried Art & Photo Exhibition When given the challenging task of judging an exhibition, which can be exceedingly difficult, I look at the following criteria (in no particular order):
-
- A successful composition, display of skill and overall artistic quality.
- An exemplary understanding of technique and execution of medium/media.
- Understanding of theme (if any).
- Originality in concept or selection of subject.
- Individuality of style, a sense of place, sense of humor, or other emotion effectively conveyed in the piece. A sense of joy in creation!
- Proper finishing and readiness to present work for display- including but not limited to framing/mounting, varnishing, finishing the edges of a gallery wrap, etc.
- The small “stuff”- for example, is the work signed? Is it signed in a way that is a distraction from the piece? Is it lacking a signature entirely?
Amanda graduated Cum Laude in 1999 with a BA in Art History from the University of Georgia and pursued graduate work at Georgia State University with a focus on Italian Medieval and Renaissance Art. In her early career, she interned at the High Museum of Art Registrar’s Office and worked as an Assistant Conservator and Fine Arts Services Manager for an Atlanta based Art Conservation and Restoration Firm. She was the Assistant Director (5 years) and then Executive Director (10 years) of a comprehensive, non-profit visual arts center in Northeast Georgia focusing on organizational leadership, board and program development, fine art exhibitions, arts education, fundraising and community outreach.
Today, she works with clients whose work she is passionate about- including local arts nonprofits as well as North Georgia city and county agencies on their own independent arts initiatives.
Amanda also provides artist representation, research, advocacy and promotion, fine art handling and installation, art event planning, grant review and administration as well as special planning projects. Her contact information is: Fine Art Consultant, Sole Proprietor, AShel Fine Art, LLC ashelfineart@gmail.com; ashelfineart.com
The Bowen Center for the Arts is located in the Historic “Old Rock School” circa 1941. Map us at 334 GA Hwy 9N, Dawsonville, GA 30534 (between Lanier Tech and Dawson Junior High in the historic district of old Dawsonville). For questions, contact us at director@bowenarts.org or call 706.216.2787. HOURS are TUES to FRI 10AM – 4PM, and SAT Noon to 4PM.
Bookings
Bookings are closed for this event.