Art in the County

The County’s premier art show is now open

The thirty-second annual Art in the County art show and sale opened last Friday at The Armoury in Picton and will run until July 13. The juried show features one hundred and eleven works of art by 89 artists, and covers a wide range of mediums and styles, including photography, sculpture, glass art, mixed media, and paintings in oil, encaustic, acrylic and watercolour. An opening reception was held last Thursday evening to launch the show and announce the award winners. Submissions to the show were selected by jurors Jim Bravo, Nicole Collins and Michelle Lavallee, who each singled out one work for Honourable Mention, and then chose one piece by consensus for the Jurors’ Choice Award. The pieces selected by the jurors were curated for display by the team of Sonja Scharf, Kelly Kyle and Jim Turner, and were hung on moveable wall displays designed and built by Leanne Rhem. Honourable mention awards were presented to Janet Comeau, Sophie Barber and Pamela Carter. The Jurors’ Choice award went to Susan Straiton for her oil on paper work Red Maple. The jurors wrote “We were continually drawn to the quiet but insistent presence of this small painting. There is a sophistication to the execution which is almost in defiance to the delicate paper substrate…The work is evidence of a laser focus, requiring patience and steadfastness, along with a deep understanding of the capacities of oil paint.”

There were a number of additional awards presented to artists. Susan Wallis was the winner of the Carson Arthur Award, which came with a prize of $500, plus an additional $500 donation to a non-profit organization advocating for the protection of the environment, as chosen by the winner. Ms. Wallis chose to direct the donation to Kenhte:ke Seed Sanctuary and Learning Centre in the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory (kenhtekeseedsanctuary. com). The Akasha Art Project Award was given to Bill Stearman for his quilt titled Reflecting on AIDS After Living Through Covid. The jurors commented “The work draws a striking emotional contrast between the global response to Covid-19 and the AIDS crisis, challenging us to confront the injustices of the past and the urgencies of the present.” The Oeno Gallery Award of Excellence was presented to Claudia McCabe for her work In Sterling’s Mist. Carlyn Moulton, owner and curator of Oeno Gallery said this award was inspired by the previous Otto Rogers Award of Excellence, and noted that it was very difficult to select a single piece from the show, given the uniform high quality. Of Ms. McCabe’s piece, Ms. Moulton said “It’ a work of marvellous contradictions. It’s a still life with movement. It’s an abstraction that dances with the figurative in a totemic fashion.” A new award for this year was the Don Watson and Andrew Innes Award, presented to a realist painter whose work is arresting not only in terms of colour and composition, but in the creative struggle evidenced in the materiality of the work itself. The jurors chose Linda Barber’s Where the Wild Things Linger from the donors’ selection of three finalists. They wrote “This clever painting rewards the viewer on many levels, micro and macro…the artist’s many brushstrokes create a unified whole where nothing is out of place or balance.”

The final award of the evening was the Community Arts Builder Award. This award recognizes an individual who has enriched community life through the arts, with nominees chosen by County residents. This year’s winners were Alex Currie and Erynn Ahern of Radiator Collective (theradiatorcollective. com). Award sponsors Laurie Gruer, Monica Klingenberg and Alysa Hawkins wrote “Radiator Collective is creating space for art in new ways in the community. They have launched multiple art shows, and musical events benefitting the local animal shelter, celebrating trans artists, and have used their platform to strongly voice the dire need for affordable housing in our community.”

Mr. Currie said that it was “awesome” to be selected for the award. “It’s a fantastic thing, and very humbling,” he said. Ms. Ahern was grateful for the award. “There are so many people in our community doing really amazing things, so to be recognized is really appreciated,” she said.

Art in the County offers residents and visitors a way to see a wide variety of art from both well established artists as well as newcomers to the craft. Julie Lower is a first-time exhibitor at the show, and said she came to art at a later stage in her life. “Accountants think in a very linear way and I’ve been trying to break free and be a lot more creative,” she said. “I did fabric art as a youngster, and my mother was a well-known stained glass artist in Quebec, and I’ve inherited from her that love of colour and creativity.” She was encouraged by two of her friends to submit a piece to the show, and was absolutely thrilled that it sold during the opening reception. “I think that the show is gorgeous. I just love that there’s so many different mediums. It’s very encouraging and inspirational for any artist to see what others are doing,” she said.

Janna Smith, executive director of Art in the County, said she expects about 3,000 people will visit the show, and announced a new partnership initiative between the show and a number of local businesses. “We want to entice Art in the County visitors to linger longer on Picton Main Street. We’ve invited several businesses to partner in a pilot referral program. Visitors who fill in a survey will get a voucher that is redeemable for a discount or other perks at Beacon Bike and Brew, the Royal Hotel, Zest Kitchen Shop, Savon du Bois, Kelly’s and Merrill House, “ she said. Sarah Fox, executive director of Visit the County, closed the presentation by congratulating Art in the County for its efforts. “You’ve shown us that art is not only a vital force for community connection and expression, but also an essential economic driver that continues to shape the fabric of our County,” she said. She noted that Ms. Smith was recently appointed to the board of Visit the County, and she looks forward to closer collaboration between the two organizations. The Art in the County show is open until July 13. Visitors to the show, with admission by freewill donation, will be given a ballot for the People’s Choice Award, or the Children’s Choice Award, with the winners to be announced on closing day. For more information, please visit artinthecounty.com