OHIO
DESIGNER CRAFTSMEN ANNOUNCES
AWARD WINNERS OF “BEST OF 2009”
(Columbus, OH)—Twelve artists were honored
with awards of excellence in Ohio Designer Craftsmen’s 26th
annual juried members’ competition, “Best of 2009.”
Opening May 3 and continuing through June 21 at the Ohio Craft
Museum, the exhibition features 110 works in clay, glass, metal,
wood, fiber and mixed media by 79 artists. Juror Wendy H. Outland,
an independent curator, arts consultant and president of Who Knows
Art, from Asheville, North Carolina, chose the work from over
332 entries by 131 artists. “Within this group of selected
images, some artists were chosen for their dedication to time-honored
traditions, others for bucking all constraints and offering something
new and refreshing,” Outland commented.
“It is a challenging task to whittle down scores of images
so the resulting exhibition (not too big, not too small) fits
neatly into a predetermined number of square feet,” she
added. “Knowing that virtually two out of every three pieces
must be eliminated, and that there needs to be a balance of scale
and media, the juror sets to work. An enjoyable process for experienced
visual arts administrators, this time it was particularly so because
I had arrived from the Southeast and was unfamiliar with most
of the artists. Try as we may to be impartial, jurors’ brains
still present background info about a known artist when we view
his/her work.”
Outland chose award winners as well: The $1000 Challenge Award
for Excellence—the exhibition’s top prize—went
to metals artists David and Roberta Williamson for a body of work.
“David and Roberta Williamson are outstanding in their field,
the composition of every piece a marvel,” Outland stated.
Ceramics artist William Brouillard of Cleveland received the Watkins
Printing Poster Award for Excellence for Red Octopus Fish
Bowl, and Toledo glass artist Monica Chapon received the
Postcard Award for Excellence for Some Days are Good.
Winners of cash awards are (name, title of work, award): Lisa
Wilson, Particle Wave No. 2, Pamela Morris Thomford Award
for Excellence in Metals. Mary
Pearse, Feeding Desire, To Have and To Hold,
and One Pearl, Many Pleasures, Jane H. Zimmerman Award
for Excellence in Body of Work; Susanne Gregg, The Gathering,
Ruth Lantz Award for Excellence in Fiber; Susan Shie, The
Food Scales/Justice: Card #11 in the Kitchen Tarot, Quilt
Surface Design International Ltd. Award; Derek Reeverts, Hen
House, Brian Lonsway Memorial Award for Humor in Craft; Sandra
Gross, Continuum, Dominick Labino Memorial Award for
Excellence in Glass; Caroline Kelley, Leaf Bowl, Barbara
Robinson Award for Excellence in Traditional Craft; Sumiko Takada,
Inlaid Vase #3, Friends of Phyllis Clark Award for Excellence
in Functional Ceramics; and Chelsey Radabaugh, Reflections,
Banded Cups Overseas, and Ephemeral Pleasures: Blue,
Emerging Craftsman Award.
Award
winners will be honored during the exhibition’s opening
reception, to be held May 3 at the Ohio Craft Museum from 1
to 4 p.m. The public is invited.
After closing at the Ohio Craft Museum, the exhibition will
travel to the Southern Ohio Museum in Portsmouth, where it will
be on view July 3–August 26, then on to the Mansfield
Art Center, where it can be seen from September 13–October
25, and finally to the Wayne Center for the Arts in Wooster,
November 12–December 19.
The Ohio Craft Museum is located at 1665 West Fifth Avenue,
Columbus, Ohio 43212. Parking and admission are free. Hours:
Monday–Friday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; Sunday, 1–4
p.m. Closed Saturday. Telephone (614) 486-4402, or see our website
www.ohiocraft.org, for further information. The museum is owned
and operated by Ohio Designer Craftsmen and receives ongoing
funding from the Ohio Arts Council, the Greater Columbus Arts
Council, and the Columbus Foundation.
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