The 2022 Paint the Town Award Winners!

It was my distinct and unique honor to serve as the 2022 Paint the Town juror for the Montgomery Art Association, which together with the town of Kensington, Maryland stages this annual visual art exhibition and competition each year in beautiful Kensington, just outside of the District.

This was a very difficult show to juror - both the open exhibition at the Kensington Armory and the plein air competition which took place yesterday all over this beautiful Maryland town outside nearby Washington, DC.  Below are the award winners selected by me - congratulations to all of them... it was a really difficult competition!

Let me repeat myself: as all great shows are, this was an immensely difficult show to judge, which is a good thing! The quality of entries was uniformly superior in almost every category, and the difference between first, second, third, and even some honorable mentions was minimal. The Portrait category in particular was tough to judge as there were so many really outstanding entries. And I was especially surprised by the Kensington category – there was not a single bad entry! As always, I am honored to be able to judge and comment on work of my fellow artists.

Kensington Category

1st Place & Best in Show (Bertha Clum Award): Historia Est Magistra Vitae by Dora Patin

Historia Est Magistra Vitae by Dora Patin

2nd Place: The Hard Work by Paula Zeller

3rd Place: Early Morning on the MARC by Barbara Mandel

Honorable Mentions: Light Remains by Virginia Browning; At the Station by Susan Fitch Brown; Cedar Lane, 3 am by David Sommers

Landscape Category

1st Place: Golden Cloud by Sarah Clayton Davis

Golden Cloud by Sarah Clayton Davis

2nd Place: Vaison La Romaine, France by Mary Vinograd

3rd Place: Water Meadows, Woodfield Road by Benita Kane Jaro

Honorable Mentions: Time Out by Margaret Ingram; Winter by Rajendra KC; Isle of Capri by Deborah Pollack; Tempest by Ting Rao; The House Before the Storm by My-Linh Rouil; Nature's Sculpture by Yik Chek Phan

Portrait Category

1st Place: I Will Conquer by Isabella Martire

I Will Conquer by Isabella Martire

2nd Place: You Are Gone and That Scares Me by Ally Morgan

3rd Place: Summer Morning by Ting Rao

Honorable Mentions: Glow by Jennifer Lynn Beaudet; Gaby Is Musing by Nan Dawkins; Playing the Blues by Karen Merkin; Weathered by Ellen Yahuda; Stock Up Time by Vicky Zhou

Still Life Category

1st Place: Veri Peri Macaron by Jennifer Barlow

Veri Peri Macaron by Jennifer Barlow

2nd Place: A Bear Necessity by Amanda Coelho

3rd Place: Waiting for Wings by Christina Webber

Honorable Mentions: Chatty Onions by Nan Dawkins; Roses Ride by Jack Hammond

Abstract Category

1st Place: Metamorphosis by Sandra Pérez-Ramos

Metamorphosis by Sandra Pérez-Ramos

2nd Place: Rhapsody of a Hug by Martina Sestakova

3rd Place: Crows by Nancy Randa

Honorable Mentions: Composition 29 by Mari Craig; Coastal Dreams by Rosemary Fallon; Happy Wave by Raya Salman; Exploration by Jenny Wilson

Sculpture Category

1st place: Patchwork of Promise by Peijisan Art

Patchwork of Promise by Peijisan Art

2nd Place: A Much Needed Break by Samantha Hecox

3rd Place: Ice Bucket by Nadia Hewchuck

Honorable Mention: Fort! by Anastasia Walsh

Photography Category

1st Place: The Gymnast by Arindam Dasgupta

The Gymnast by Arindam Dasgupta

2nd Place: Warbler House by Julie Steinberg

3rd Place: Snow Day by Regina Boston

Plein Air Competition

1st place: Saturday Market by Vicky Zhou

Saturday Market by Vicky Zhou

2nd place: OK Morning! by Robert Pearlman

3rd place: Water Fountain by Carrie Adler

Honorable mentions: Professor by Holly Buehler; Outdoor Seating, Kensington by Garine Magary

Student Invitational

Winner: The Bearer by Elielle Kayomb

The Bearer by Elielle Kayomb

2nd Place: Hammer Brooch by Nadia Hewchuck

3rd Place: A Gazelle in the Water by Stephanie Fernandez

Job in the Arts

Chief Executive Officer, International Arts & Artists 

International Arts & Artist's Board of Trustees is immediately seeking a dynamic, skilled, experienced leader to become IA&A's next President and Chief Executive Officer when our founder David Furchgott retires this fall.

Ideal candidates will have:

• A passion for IA&A’s mission of increasing cross-cultural understanding through the arts.
• 10+ years appropriate professional experience, including at least five years in an executive role.
• Substantive connections in the arts and strong relationships with national & international arts leaders.
• A record of success in the growth of her/his past endeavors. • A deep understanding of, and a driving commitment to, the arts and cultural exchange.
• A history of effective leadership and the ability to motivate and inspire a small but talented team.
• Entrepreneurial instincts with strong business acumen with a drive for results, and a track record in building new relationships and developing new programs.
• Track record in building revenue earned and charitable revenue streams. Compensation ranging from $120,000 to $145,000 plus health insurance and other benefits, and reasonable moving expense reimbursement (depending upon experience).

To learn more about this great opportunity, download the full job description. To apply visit DRi Waterstone.

IA&A at Hillyer | 9 Hillyer Ct, NW, Washington, DC 20008

(202) 338-0680 | | atHillyer.org

2022 Paint the Town Labor Day Show

The 2022 Paint the Town Labor Day Show starts tomorrow in downtown Kensington,  MD. Enjoy artist demonstrations, yummy food trucks, amazing art, live music, and more!

Come enjoy the art of over 200 members of the Montgomery Art Association. The event is free and open to the public. Stop by September 3-5 at the Kensington Historic Armory at 3710 Mitchell Street, Kensington, MD. Also over 175 artists painting on the streets of Kensington! Plein air painting at its best!

https://montgomeryart.org/labor-day-2022/

Monoprint Collages by Rosemary Cooley at Washington Printmakers Gallery

Dream Forest: Chance Meeting - Monoprint Collages by Rosemary Cooley

October 1 – 30, 2022 at at Washington Printmakers Gallery

1641 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Washington DC

Opening reception: Saturday, October 1 from 6:00-8:00 p.m.

Washington Printmakers presents artworks of Rosemary Cooley, in her fifth solo exhibition at the gallery. Her painterly monoprints and collages reflect thoughts from the unconscious mind, a personal archeology based on a lifetime of world travel and cross cultural experiences, coupled with a love of art history and the materials of art making. 

As a printmaker who has long honored process as a road to product, she now delves into the Jungian concept that one must disentangle from the Ego, and work intuitively, to reach a more powerful path.

In this exhibit, the artist celebrates notions of Individuation, of finding one’s unique personality apart from societal expectations. The Celebration of the Collective Unconscious, in which there are symbols which mankind has repeated throughout ages and over countless cultures, also plays a strong role. 

The artworks are created from torn and cut monoprints, all hand pulled from an inked polymer plate onto various archival papers, ranging from thick to thin. This is where the Dream Forest begins, and where certain unexpected, even disparate entities come together to form a new sensory reality. 

Unconscious thoughts spill into the real world in the form of landscapes, still lifes and abstract designs as monoprint pieces combine with old script, found in world markets, are transferred onto thin Japanese papers and added to the works. Often the work is sharpened with watercolor painting. And as a final step, Cooley's fascination with medieval manuscript illuminations is reflected in accents of 23k gold leaf.

This chance meeting of unrelated entities somehow creates a new reality when pasted down. As Jung said, “Often the hands know how to solve a riddle with which the intellect has wrestled in vain.”

Wodzianski at the next Affordable Art Fair

This recent work by Andrew Wodzianski will be in booth D15 next 22-25 September at the Affordable Art Fair in Chelsea, NYC!

Star Trek rocks!!!!

Celebrate Diversity by Andrew Wodzianski
Acrylic on Vintage Star Trek blueprint

Hope and Healing: 2022 Prince George's County Juried Exhibition

From PG County:

Dear Artists,

We will be displaying Hope and Healing: The 2022 Prince George's County Juried exhibition at Montpelier Arts Center this winter, from November 2, 2022 through January 6, 2023. The artwork will be selected by the juror, Leslie Pelzer, and then will be installed and displayed in the gallery space.

We would like to encourage you to apply to the call for entry for this exhibition. Artists may submit up to 3 samples of work for consideration in relation to the exhibit's title and theme. All media are welcomed, please refer to the size requirement information in the call for entry text.

The deadline to apply will be October 7, 2022 at 11:59 pm. All applications must be submitted online through Submittable. Please create a free account, if needed. https://m-ncppc.submittable.com/submit.

Please send any questions to Stuart Diekmeyer (stuart.diekmeyer@pgparks.com) or Sara Caporaletti (sara.caporaletti@pgparks.com)

Homage to H.P. lovecraft

This original homage to the great master of horror will be at the Affordable Art Fair New York City in booth D15 at the Chelsea Pavilion in Chelsea in NYC 22-25 September!

Homage to H.P. Lovecraft