March 16, 2005
Art show awards efforts
Area high school students compete in NMC art contest
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Regional high school art students got a taste of a juried art show - with cash at stake for top winners - during Northwestern Michigan College's 2005 High School Art Competition.
For nearly 20 years, the college has invited student work from schools ranging from Gaylord to Glen Lake, Elk Rapids to Cadillac to submit their best work. A panel of volunteer college art students working with NMC faculty jury the work, culling among the 284 entries from 16 schools. Then faculty from the college designate the top three winners in each category and the honorable mentions.
This year, based on feedback from participating high school art teachers, the categories increased to six: painting, design, jewelry, photography, ceramics and drawing / illustrating / printmaking. Previous shows had only two categories.
NMC instructors also choose a best of show work, which this year went to Wesley Eggebrecht of Ellsworth. Eggebrecht received $100 for this honor. First place winners in each category received $75, second place winners received $50 and third place winners received $25.
"It was a tough competition, it's always a hard thing to jury these shows," said Doug Domine, chair of the art department at the college. "Everyone who took part in the jurying process said it was very difficult at first."
"Everyone, both prizewinners and non-prizewinners, should be congratulated for the show," he added.
Forty-five students, parents and art teachers gathered at the Fine Arts Building Friday evening for a reception. They checked out the show's works, marveling at the talent and diversity on display, and also attended an awards ceremony that bestowed ribbons and checks on winners.
All the pieces in the show are on display through March 20 in the halls of the Fine Arts Building.
"It's wonderful, I guess I can't believe that I even got a place," said Sarah Bassett, a senior at Elk Rapids High School who took third place in the drawing / illustrating/ printmaking category. "It's an honor."
Matt Kirby, a senior at St. Francis High School, had his eerie photograph of Building 50 juried into the show, one of two photographs he submitted. A multi-media artist, Kirby works in digital and film photography, drawing, painting and mixed media. The reception Friday night inspired him artistically.
"I've just got a whole bunch of good ideas here," he said, adding he realized from seeing other works he should have also entered some of his drawings.
Students get invaluable experience through this art show, said Dan Lisuk, chair of the art department at Traverse City West High School. A concrete award of money on the horizon helps build excitement, too, and makes the competition more real.
"There's always the disappointment for the ones who don't get accepted, but I just tell then that, 'Hey, that's part of the art world,'" Lisuk said. "You put your work out there and you can't try to outthink the judges, you got to be yourself."
Lisuk tells his students that when he was a junior in college, he had a work accepted at a very prestigious show. Thinking he was pretty cool, he recalled, he then did not get another piece into a show for ten years.
To Lisuk, art shows also lend an element of objectivity to a creative pursuit.
"People have this stereotype that art is just there to max out on creativity, so how can you judge art?" he added. "Well, guess what, you can judge art."