Juried Show
“Quiet Cove”, Painting on canvas, by Beverly Sheppard, winner of an Award of Excellence 2012
The former Chestertown Arts League’s Annual Open Juried Art Show had a run of 64 annual shows through April of 2012, bringing together fine works of art from regional artists. Following the merger of the Arts League with Chester River Artworks to form Chestertown RiverArts, the new organization is proud to continue this tradition with the first annual Chestertown RiverArts’ Open Juried Fine Art Show. The new show is scheduled for September 2013 and will be mounted in RiverArt’s new galleries in downtown Chestertown. The Juror will be David Grafton of Easton and the Judge will be Mary McCoy of Centreville.
Registration for the show will be done on-line via this web site and images of work will be submitted via email at registration. The registration period will open on May 15 and close on June 29. Mediums of works acceptable for the show include: all painting mediums on paper, board and canvas including pastel, mixed mediums and collage; drawings and hand-pulled prints; photography; and sculpture and other 3D works. The work must be original and completed in the past 24 months (i.e. May 2011 or later). All artists residing in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico are eligible. Please refer to this web site in later April for the detailed call for artists which will include the timetables for notifications, delivery of accepted work, show dates and other details for registration.
Prizes awarded for any medium include “Best in Show” and “Juror’s Choice” and several “Awards of Excellence” and “Honorable Mentions”. Five medium specific prizes will be given for: watermedia painting; painting in oil or acrylic on canvas or board; pastel; photography; and a work in drawing, hand-pulled prints or mixed media. There will be one theme prize, “Best Representation of the Eastern Shore,” sponsored by Bob Ramsey of Finishing Touch in Chestertown – all mediums are considered for this prize. This is a long-standing tradition of the CAL Juried Show and rewards work evoking the rural nature and/or bay and river life of the Chesapeake region. Total monetary prizes will exceed $2400.
Show Juror David Grafton is an internationally-known painter with works in collections around the US and in Canada, Japan and Europe. He is collected by Earl Powell, Director of the National Gallery of Art and has had shows in NYC at the National Academy of Design; Allied Artists of America; and the Pastel Society of America. He is best known for his evocative, painterly landscapes and seascapes and for his bold abstracts. Based in Easton, MD, he has maintained a working gallery in downtown Easton (32 E Dover St) for over 10 years. He was juried in to the 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012 Plein Air Easton Competitions and has been an active teacher, muralist and juror.
Show Judge Mary McCoy has an academic background in Studio Art and has written extensively on art for many
“Chesapeake Bay Skipjack”, Watermedia by Ardythe Jolliff, winner of Best Watercolor 2012
publications including the Washington Post and most recently as an art reviewer for local publications. She is also an accomplished sculptor specializing in found object installations and as a collaborator with her husband Howard McCoy. Their collaborative environmental sculptures have been featured at the Adkins Arboretum since 1999 and their work has been shown regionally in the Eastern United States and in Wales, Ireland and New Zealand. The McCoys have been central to the development of the Adkins’ art program and recently were recognized as the arboretum’s Volunteers of the Year for 2011.
Refer questions regarding this show to Show Organizer Rich Hall at rwhall@pitt.edu or 410-928-5012 and visit this web page for updates on the show.