The Greenville Museum of Art in Greenville, NC, is accepting entries from North Carolina visual artists, 18 years and older for the GMA’s “Biennial Juried Art Exhibition”.  Entry fee and cash awards.

Deadline: June 17, 2013.

For more information and to download the prospectus visit  (http://gmoa.org/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions/).

The board of directors of the North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, are pleased to announce the hiring of Lindsey Lambert as the center’s new executive director. He will officially start at the beginning of June.

Lambert is the former director of the Brock Historical Museum and College Archives at Greensboro College, a position he held for over a decade, and he is the current board president of the North Carolina Museums Council (NCMC), an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) organization comprised of several hundred museum professionals across the state.

Lambert has a BA in History from NCSU and a MA in Public History from Appalachian State University. On NCMC’s board, he has previously served as nominating chair, treasurer, and vice president. He comes to the Pottery Center with a solid array of museum, technical, networking and grant writing skills, as well as a youthful energy and a sound appreciation of pottery and its traditions. Mark Hewitt, current president of the Pottery Center’s board, says, “It is good news that the Pottery Center has someone so capable to direct its activities, and we expect his tenure to coincide with increased visibility for the Pottery Center, its mission, and all the potters of North Carolina.” Lambert was born, raised and still resides in Randolph County.

Of the Pottery Center, Lambert says, “Working collaboratively we can help the Pottery Center to better realize its full potential of promoting public awareness and appreciation of the history, heritage, and ongoing tradition of pottery making in North Carolina. In addition to serving as the Pottery Center’s director, I am also becoming a member at the Sustainer level because I support the center’s mission and feel that it is important to support it financially as well as through my work.”

Hewitt also says, “Thanks must be given to the tireless Board members and advisors who wrote grants to Z. Smith Reynolds and the John Hanes Foundation that provided funds for the position. Thanks go also to the members of the search committee for identifying our new director. There are many fine people working on behalf of the Center, and we are delighted to have Lambert leading such a talented and dedicated team.”

Currently on display until July 27 is an exhibit entitled “Big Red: Chrome Red and Other Red Glazes of the North Carolina Piedmont.”

Exhibitions are made possible through the generosity of our membership, the John W. & Anna H. Hanes Foundation, the Mary and Elliott Wood Foundation and the Goodnight Educational Foundation. This project was supported by the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts. Thank you!

The mission of the North Carolina Pottery Center is to promote public awareness of and appreciation for the history, heritage, and ongoing tradition of pottery making in North Carolina. The Center is located at 233 East Avenue in Seagrove, NC. Hours of operation are Tue. – Sat., 10am – 4pm.

For more information, please call 336/873-8430 or visit (www.ncpotterycenter.org).

The Arts Council of York County will host an Arts Talk Luncheon to kick off the 2013 Ag + Art Tour on Wednesday, June 5, 2013, from 11:30am-1:00pm, at the Center for the Arts, 121 E. Main St., Rock Hill, SC. Tickets must be purchased in advance by calling 803/328-2787. Admission is $15 and includes two guest speakers, a box lunch, beverage and dessert.

The focus of this year’s Arts Talk Luncheon for the Ag + Art Tour is gardening in urban and suburban settings and the National Barn Trail Program. Martha Charles, an expert on backyard gardening and farming in suburban settings, and Martha File, the lead coordinator of the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail, have been invited to speak at the luncheon.

Martha Charles – Charles is a graduate of Judson College in Marion, AL. She is a local gardener who employs the help of her husband and sons to keep their garden in balance. In addition to gardening and raising chickens and rabbits in her backyard, Charles also quilts, spins yarn, and knits.

Martha File – File holds a Masters in Public Health from the University of South Carolina. Born in Aiken, SC, she spent most of her summers in the Low Country of South Carolina. Throughout her career, File has assisted to develop and manage a wide spectrum of educational and service programs, spending much of her time focusing on educational tourism through the promotion of local artists and points of interest. She currently serves as the lead coordinator of the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail, and supports the development of the Barn Quilt Trail throughout South Carolina.

The Arts Council received a grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield to purchase the materials to make permanent barn quilt blocks for farms participating in the Ag + Art Tour. A workshop was held last week at the Center for the Arts where four new barn quilts were painted. These new barn quilts will be installed at farms in the weeks leading up to the Tour.

The Ag + Art Tour, a free, weekend-long, self-guided tour, is designed to generate interest in local farms, fresh foods, and “made in York County” traditional arts. The event, coordinated by the Arts Council of York County, Clemson Extension of York County, the Olde English District Tourism Commission, the York County Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Culture & Heritage Museums, is partially funded by the York County Hospitality Tax, AgSouth and Clemson University.

For more information on the Ag + Art Tour, please visit (http://www.agandarttour.com). For more information on Arts Council events, contact the Arts Council of York County at 803/328-2787, by e-mail at (arts@yorkcountyarts.org), or visit (http://www.yorkcountyarts.org).

Celebrate Clay Day at the Blue Ridge Parkway’s Folk Art Center in Asheville, NC, on June 1, 2013, from 10am to 4pm. This free event features craft demonstrations and hands-on activities for children and adults.

Clay Day has been a favorite happening at the Folk Art Center for over 20 years. Members of the Southern Highland Craft Guild and invited guests demonstrate throwing on the potter’s wheel, hand building, and surface design on clay, among other techniques.

Expert potters will demonstrate a variety of ceramic techniques including wheel throwing.

A highlight of the day is the “Make-and-Take” Raku Firing.  Buy a $10 pot, glaze it, and watch as expert potters, Lynn Jenkins, Gary Clontz, and Steven Forbes-deSoule, raku fire it for you.  Raku is a ceramic firing process which uses fire and smoke to create unique patterns and designs.  Lynn will also demonstrate horse hair raku techniques, using horse hair to create designs on pots.  SHCG members Jan Morris and Sandra Rowland will host a children’s table where kids will be invited to play with clay and make something to take home. Clay for demonstrations has been generously donated by Highwater Clays of Asheville, NC.

Participants to Clay Day include the artists of The Village Potters located in the River District of Asheville,  sharing a myriad of ceramic techniques.  Volunteers from Haywood Community College Professional Crafts Department will be demonstrating and assisting visitors with a try at the potter’s wheel.  Southern Highland Craft Guild member Cindy Billingsley will lead a collaborative sculpture project.

During Clay Day visitors have the opportunity to purchase a $10 pot, decorate with glazes, and wait while it is raku fired. In this picture a visitor at last year’s Clay Day decorates a pot.  Raku is a ceramic firing process which uses fire and smoke to create unique patterns and designs.

While at the Folk Art Center, visitors will have the opportunity to visit Allanstand Craft Shop, the Eastern National bookstore and Blue Ridge Parkway information desk, as well as three exhibition galleries.  Outside the Folk Art Center, there are hiking trails, picnic tables, grassy areas for a picnic and free parking.

A visitor to last year’s Clay Day uses horse hair to decorate a pot which will be raku fired.  Raku is a ceramic firing process which uses fire and smoke to create unique patterns and designs.

The Southern Highland Craft Guild is a non-profit, educational organization established in 1930 to bring together the crafts and craftspeople of the Southern Highlands for the benefit of shared resources, education, marketing and conservation.  The Southern Highland Craft Guild is an authorized concessioner of the National Park Service, Department of the Interior.  The Folk Art Center is located at Milepost 382 of the Blue Ridge Parkway, just north of the Hwy 70 entrance in east Asheville, NC.

For more information, including a list of participating craftspeople, call 828/298-7928 or visit (www.craftguild.org).

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 in North Charleston, SC.  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, 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 or e-mail to (culturalarts@northcharleston.org). For details on the North Charleston Arts Festival, visit (www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com).

Clayworks, Charlotte, NC’s only nonprofit organization dedicated to the instruction and the creation of ceramic arts, was awarded a $50,000 grant from the Women’s Impact Fund to purchase and equip a claymobile. A conversion van will serve as the claymobile and will be outfitted with a potter’s wheel, clay and glazing materials in order to expose Mecklenburg County’s underserved populations to high-quality visual arts experiences in their schools and neighborhoods.

Clayworks now serves more than 7,500 individuals a year at its facility at 4506 Monroe Road in east Charlotte. The 8-year-old organization is dedicated to the promotion of ceramic arts, advancement of artists and students and enrichment of the communities it serves. With the use of the new claymobile, Clayworks will transport everything needed for a ceramics class including an instructor. Finished ceramic pieces will be transported to the Clayworks facility for firing and then returned to the students.

“It’s always been a wish of mine from the inception of Clayworks to reach people who have never been exposed to ceramic art and therefore don’t know the joy that comes from creating in clay,” said Clayworks Executive Director Adrienne Dellinger. “There are so many children and adults who don’t have transportation or who can’t afford to take classes. With the claymobile, we can bring the clay instruction to underserved populations.”

The claymobile will provide cost-effective ceramics instruction to educational and cultural programs by sparing host institutions the need to obtain equipment and expertise to produce ceramics. The claymobile’s teaching artists will collaborate with host staff to design projects that directly tie into classroom curriculum and/or organization-wide themes, ensuring an academically enriching experience for participants. The claymobile program will begin with the 2013-2014 school year and will provide 60 ceramic classes to the YWCA after-school program.

“Clayworks is grateful to the members of the Women’s Impact Fund who collectively choose the Clayworks claymobile project as the arts and culture grant recipient this year,” said Gary Knight, Clayworks Board President. “This is a highly competitive grant process and we’re honored that the Women’s Impact Fund saw great value in our project, which will enhance and inspire Mecklenburg County residents through the experience of ceramic art creation.”

Clayworks is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to the promotion and development of the ceramic arts through classes, workshops and community outreach. The organization provides studio space to 22 local artists, state of the art equipment, professional development opportunities and workshops. Clayworks offers adult ceramic classes as well as independent study programs and master classes led by nationally known ceramic artists. The organization is located at 4506 Monroe Road, Charlotte NC 28205.

For more information visit (www.clayworksinc.org) or call 704/344-0795.

The Women’s Impact Fund is a Charlotte-based nonprofit organization that maximizes women’s leadership in philanthropy by engaging and educating its membership, increasing charitable contributions and strengthening communities through the impact of collective giving. The more than 400 members are dedicated to changing lives and addressing critical needs in Mecklenburg County. The fund has awarded $3 million to 39 nonprofits since 2003.

For more information visit (www.womensimpactfund.org).

The Hickory Museum of Art in Hickory, NC, is hosting an indoor juried exhibition called “Road Trip” in conjunction with an upcoming outdoor event called “The AutoLawn,” showcasing European automobiles of all makes, models, and ages. Artists are invited to submit work for “Road Trip” that expresses a theme relating to cars, journeys, and the open road. The exhibition will be held in HMA’s second floor Coe Gallery from Aug. 31 – Jan. 5, 2014.

The Hickory Museum of Art wants you to explore the theme of the personal automobile as it relates to your generation or your life’s journey or perhaps how it defined a certain personal Road Trip or a particular phase. How have you seen life from behind the steering wheel?

Joyce Kay Gordon, “Blue Motorcycle”, pastel on paper

The Museum is using (www.CallForEntry.org) (CaFÉ) to manage this call for artists. All entries must be submitted through CaFÉ by June 30, 2013. To view the prospectus, visit the CaFÉ website or (www.HickoryArt.org).

CaFÉ provides artists with an easy-to-use system to create a profile with contact information, upload digital images of their artwork, and apply to a number of open calls for entry at one time. There is no cost to register for this service.

Artists may submit up to three (3) images for a non-refundable $35 fee. (A $15 off coupon code is available for members of the Hickory Museum of Art. Please call Blair Phillips, Development Manager at 828/327-8576 for code.) Entry fees are non-refundable. Artists may enter their work ONLINE ONLY through CaFÉ (www.CallForEntry.org). CaFÉ accepts Mastercard/Visa.

The Museum is offering two cash prizes. Best in Show, selected by the jury panel, will receive $350 and a solo exhibition at the Museum. The People’s Choice Award will be selected by the public during The AutoLawn on Sept. 14; the winner receives $250. Voting will take place the day of event between 10am-3pm (only one ballot per person).

For further info call 828/327-8576 or visit (www.hickoryart.org).

Fine craft artists and artisans from across South Carolina were invited to participate in the “12th Annual South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition”, the state’s only juried fine craft competition and exhibition. Organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, the show was presented May 3-11 as a component of the 2013North Charleston Arts Festival held in North Charleston, SC.

Following an extensive pre-jury process, 47 applicants were asked to participate and 120 entries were submitted in the categories of clay, fiber, metal, wood, and 3D mixed media. Cash awards totaling $6,500 were made at the sole discretion of the juror, Karen Derksen, Director of Winthrop University Galleries and lecturer for the Department of Fine Arts and the Department of Design at Winthrop in Rock Hill, SC. After making her selections, Derksen stated, “Jurying a show is one of the most gratifying undertakings of my position and also one of the most challenging. I enjoy the opportunity to view the inspiring work being created in our state and as expected the entries in this year’s Palmetto Hands exhibition demonstrate what accomplished artists and creative, high quality work is being produced in South Carolina.” She continued, “It is always exciting to see what is developing in fine craft, as it captures traditions and evolves into a modern contemporary context. Overall, I was impressed with the quality of the submissions. My heartfelt congratulations go to all included artists, and especially to the award winners.”

“Baseball Shoe High Top” by Dennis Vernon (Best in Show)

After awarding ribbons, Derksen also selected pieces from the show to assemble a “South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Traveling Exhibition”, which will tour the state through the South Carolina State Museum’s 2013/2014 Traveling Exhibitions Program. “One of my goals was to select a show that would express the diversity of the mediums and styles that I was observing,” Dersken said. “My purpose when selecting an exhibition is to be intentional about the relationship of one artwork to another and create an overall totality that tells a story.” The Traveling Exhibitions Program gives galleries, museums, and art centers across South Carolina the opportunity to request the exhibit to tour their facilities, thus providing additional exposure for the selected artists.

In addition to awards given by the juror, three 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 winners of the “2013 SC Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition”:

Best of Show
“Baseball Shoe High Top” (Mixed Media) by Dennis Vernon (Okatie, SC)

Outstanding Merit
“A Smoked Salmon” (Clay) by Patz Fowle (Hartsville, SC)
From Tuscaloosa to Timbuktu (Mixed Media) by Kim Keats (Okatie, SC)

City of North Charleston Purchase Awards
“Upright Fish with Octopus” (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
“The Elegance of Grace” (Mixed Media) by Georgette Willis Sanders (McClellanville, SC)
“Hands Off!” (Clay) by Pamela Steele (Gilbert, SC)

“A Smoked Salmon” by Patz Fowle (Outstanding Merit)

Honorable Mentions
“A Price Greater Than Rubies” (Mixed Media) by Dina Barron (Summerville, SC)
“Within” (Clay) by Fiorenzo Berardozzi (Charleston, SC)
“Botanicals (Illustrations From My Garden)” (Mixed Media) by Cynthia Colbert (Lexington, SC)
“Beetle with Bumps” (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
“Hourglass Dulcimer” (Wood) by Dean Eades (Seneca, SC)
“Petals” (Clay) by Sheri Farbstein (Hilton Head, SC)
“Anonymous” (Fiber) by Susan Lenz (Columbia, SC)
“Red Coral” (Clay) by Deborah Mather (Murrel’s Inlet, SC)
“Original Tartan Design #1″ (Large) (Fiber) by Beth Melton (Rock Hill, SC)
“Glory” (Mixed Media) by Georgette Willis Sanders (McClellanville, SC)
“Enlightened Fish” (Mixed Media) by Matt Wilson (North Charleston, SC)
“The Potato Help” (Mixed Media) by Michael Woodle (Conway, SC)

SC Palmetto Hands Traveling Exhibition Selections included:

“Jughead” (Clay) by Deborah Appleby (North Charleston, SC)
“A Price Greater Than Rubies” (Mixed Media) by Dina Barron (Summerville, SC)
“Beachcombers” (Mixed Media) by Margaret Bass (Eastover, SC)
“Koi Pond” (Mixed Media) by Margaret Bass (Eastover, SC)
“Every Child Deserves a Home” (Fiber) by Ellen Byrd (Mt. Pleasant, SC)
“A Place of Her Own” (Fiber) by Ellen Byrd (Mt. Pleasant, SC)
“Doll House” (Fiber) by Ellen Byrd (Mt. Pleasant, SC)
“My Garden of Earthly Delights” (Mixed Media) by Cynthia Colbert (Lexington, SC)
“Beetle with Bumps” (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
“Serving Platter” (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
“Petals” (Clay) by Sheri Farbstein (Hilton Head, SC)
“Patz’s Picasso Pot” (Clay) by Patz Fowle (Hartsville, SC)
“Play – Circle No. 2″ (Clay) by Miyako Fujiwara (Charleston, SC)
“Play – Circle No. 7″ (Clay) by Miyako Fujiwara (Charleston, SC)
“Phillip Simmons Heart Gate” (Fiber) by Arianne King Comer (North Charleston, SC)
“My Life as a Tree Totem” (Mixed Media) by Kim Keats (Okatie, SC)
“Anonymous” (Fiber) by Susan Lenz (Columbia, SC)
“Red Coral” (Clay) by Deborah Mather (Murrel’s Inlet, SC)
“Tuned” (Clay) by Deborah Mather (Murrel’s Inlet, SC)
“Original Tartan Design #1″ (Large) (Fiber) by Beth Melton (Rock Hill, SC)
“Baseball Shoe High Top” (Mixed Media) by Dennis Vernon (Okatie, SC)
“The Potato Help” (Mixed Media) by Michael Woodle (Conway, SC)

“From Tuscaloosa to Timbuktu” by Kim Keats (Outstanding Merit)

For more information about the “South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition” and other exhibition opportunities, contact the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department at 843/740-5854, e-mail to (culturalarts@northcharleston.org), or visit (www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com).

Organizations interested in hosting the traveling exhibition should contact Jeff Powley, South Carolina State Museum Outreach Manager, at 803/737-4159 or e-mail to (jeff.powley@scmuseum.org).

Sculpture artists from across the nation applied to the “8th Annual National Outdoor Sculpture Competition and Exhibition”, displayed at the picturesque North Charleston Riverfront Park in North Charleston, SC, and presented as a component of the 2013 North Charleston Arts Festival. Organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, this unique, eleven month exhibition offers established and emerging artists the opportunity to display their thought provoking, extraordinary sculptures, as well as compete for up to $17,250 in honorariums and awards.

Nine out of 47 submissions were pre-juried into the exhibition by the juror, Janet Kagan, a Founding Principal of the Public Art Collaborative with more than three decades of experience in strategic planning with established and emergent art programs and management of projects representing both artists and agencies. Once installed at the exhibition site, Kagan then made her selections for Best in Show, Outstanding Merit, and Honorable Mentions.

“Bunny” by Jeff Brewer (Best in Show)

“I am honored to jury the 2013 National Outdoor Sculpture Competition and Exhibition at Riverfront Park. It is a privilege to contribute to the appreciation of art in a landscaped, public context,” Kagan stated. She continued, “Each of the 2013 selections eloquently speak to us and elucidate how the artists’ ideas translated into material form, the works’ relationship to both physical and human nature, and our evoked impulses for interaction and surprise. These nine sculptures create surface tensions that play with angled voids and intersections. No two perspectives are the same as we walk toward, around and in the works. There is also a heft associated with these artworks – not just in their material, color, and scale, but in their aesthetic request for connection and dialogue. I hope you will mingle with, touch, and listen to the voices the works articulate.”

The nine sculptures selected for exhibition are by nine artists from six states. Congratulations to the winners of the 2013/4 National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition:

“Bunny” (steel) by Jeff Brewer – Nacogdoches, TX (Best in Show)
“Tier II” (painted steel) by Anne Melanie – Greenville, NC  (Outstanding Merit)
“Transponder” (steel) by Gary Gresko – Oriental, NC (Hon. Mention)
“Life” (painted steel) by Adam Walls – Lauvinburg, NC (Hon. Mention)
“A Little Less Than Meets the Eye” (steel) by Bill Wood – Fairfax, VA (Hon. Mention)
“Ender’s Enigma” (corten/painted steel) by Davis Whitfield IV – Mountain City, TN
“The Burning” (carved limestone) by Paris Alexander – Raleigh, NC
“Cowl” (oiled steel) by Carl Billingsley – Ayden, NC
“Daddy Longlegs” (steel) by John W. Parker – Glendside, PA

“Tier II” by Ann Melanie (Outstanding Merit)

Sculpture sites are located throughout North Charleston Riverfront Park, located at 1001 Everglades Avenue on the former Charleston Naval Base.  The park is set on the banks of the beautiful Cooper River.  In addition the sculptures visitors may enjoy ten acres of walking paths, a performance pavilion, picnic shelter, a fishing pier and boardwalk, an oversized sandbox, and children’s play fountain.  The historic site is centered in the Noisette District, the largest urban redevelopment project ever undertaken in the US.

The 2013/14 National Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition will be on display through March, 2014. For more information or to be added to the application mailing list for the 2014/15 Competition, please call 843/740-5854 or e-mail to (culturalarts@northcharleston.org). Visit (www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com) to view photographs and artist statements.

701 Center for Contemporary Art in Columbia, SC, announces that the jury panel for the 701 CCA South Carolina Biennial 2013 will consist of David Furchgott of Washington, DC, Cecelia “Ce” Scott of Charlotte, NC, and Frank McCauley of Sumter, SC.

The two-part SC Biennial exhibition will take place September – December at 701 CCA. South Carolina artists have been invited to submit materials and be considered for the Biennial, which is the second organized by 701 CCA.

The deadline for artists’ submissions is June 1, 2013.

Furchgott is the president and founder of International Arts & Artists in Washington, DC. The non-profit organization is one of the country’s major producers of traveling fine arts exhibition. Through its exhibitions, IA&A promotes cross-cultural understanding and exposure to the arts internationally. Prior to his involvement with IA&A, Furchgott, a Charleston, SC, native, for 15 years headed the International Sculpture Center in New Jersey, where he founded the organization’s prominent “Sculpture” magazine.

Scott is an artist, curator and a co-founder of the McColl Center in Charlotte, NC, where she worked from 1994 – 2012. As the creative director at McColl, the Detroit, MI, native curated exhibitions and was the driving force behind the center’s artist-in-residence program, which is considered among the best in the country. Scott also worked as creative director at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Art + Culture, also in Charlotte. She also is a private chef.

McCauley is an artist and chief curator and assistant director of the Sumter County Gallery of Art. The Jacksonville, FL, native, used to be the director and curator of Spark Contemporary Art Space in Syracuse, NY, the city where he received an MFA at Syracuse University. For 701 CCA, McCauley in 2012 curated the new media exhibition “Faster Forward”.

Click here for more details on Biennial Submissions (http://www.701cca.org/2013/04/701-cca-south-carolina-biennial-2013-call-for-artist-submissions/).

Please submit further inquiries by e-mail to (director@701cca.org) or call Sheldon Paschal at 803/319-9949.