Saturday, February 4, 2012

The Arts Commission Announces 29th Annual Ninth Congressional District Invitational Art Exhibition

What: Ninth Congressional District Invitational Art Exhibition

Presented by The Arts Commission and Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, in conjunction with Oberlin College and Firelands Association of the Visual Arts

When: (Toledo) Monday, January 30 – Friday, February 24, 2012
                        Reception: Sunday, February 12, 4 – 6 p.m.

             (Oberlin) Monday, March 5– Friday, March 30, 2012
                        Reception: Sunday, March 11, 1 – 2:30 p.m.

Where:  (Toledo) Lobby of Fifth Third Center at One Seagate, Downtown Toledo

               (Oberlin) Oberlin College Science Center, 110 Woodland Ave., Oberlin

Once again,The Arts Commission and Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur will celebrate the creativity and artistic talent of area youth with the Ninth Congressional District Invitational Art Exhibition. Art teachers from high schools within Ohio’s Ninth District are invited to nominate two student artworks for display. Artworks are selected to receive awards by a jury composed of art educators, local artists, and representatives from institutions sponsoring awards. The artworks recognized with awards will be unveiled at the Toledo reception on Sunday, February 12, 2012.

This year’s jurors were Anna Kenar, Bowling Green State University, Instructor, Printmaking; Barry Whittaker, University of Toledo, Assistant Professor of Art, New Media Design Practices; Barbara Rollins, Firelands Association of the Visual Arts, Board Member and Painter, Jorge Gallardo, Toledo fine artist; Kate Pilacky, Western Reserve Land Conservancy, Associate Field Director and Painter, Sandy Shult, Libbey Inc., Graphic Artist.

The Congressional First Place Award winner will have his or her artwork displayed in the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. for one year. Those who receive the Congressional Runner-Up Award will have their work displayed throughout the year in Marcy Kaptur’s office. A new component was added to the competition for 2006, which invited students to explore the concepts of“commercial art” and “surface design”. A separate award is given to the artwork deemed most suitable for commercial design application. Employees at Libbey Inc. then produce a short run of Libbey glassware printed with a design derived from the selected artwork. A representative from Libbey Inc. judges this portion of the competition and also hosts a workshop introducing design careers, open to all students participating in the exhibition.

Other awards for this year’s exhibition have generously been sponsored by: Bowling Green State University School of Art, The University of Toledo Department of Art, Oberlin College, Lourdes University Department of Art, The Law Firm of Eastman and Smith, Valko and Associates, Rudolph Libbe Companies Inc., Kate Pilacky and the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, and Dennis Norman and Nicole Brandstrup.

This Exhibition is also made possible through the generous support of:  One Seagate, Libbey Inc., GEM Inc., Owens Community College and Scribbled Napkin Designs.

Sixty artworks from students attending 13 different local high schools are included in this year’s exhibition, with 29 different artworks receiving awards.While the level of the award received will not be unveiled until the opening reception, this year’s winners include:  Emily Aossey (Rogers), Kelly H. Barfield (Ottawa Hills), Frankey Cunningham (Toledo School for the Arts), Jacob Ervin(Whitmer), Drew Fleniken (Toledo School for the Arts), Alicia Gonzalez (Waite), Kara Guyton (Bowsher), Jacqueline Kari-DeFrain (Notre Dame), Dana Killam (St.Ursula), Haley Mann (Whitmer), Jenna Markovich (Toledo School for the Arts), Morgan Matney (Waite), Nicole Miller (Notre Dame), Lee Monday (Whitmer), Caitlyn Naus (Whitmer), Meredith Niehaus (St. Ursula), Sarah O’Leary (Whitmer), Marissa Penrod (Whitmer), Brooke Puthoff (Whitmer), Cole Reinhart (Bowsher), TaylorRoberts (Toledo School for the Arts), Robert Saldivar (Waite), Korie Sharrar(Whitmer), Jenna Stasko (Whitmer), Heidi Surface (Notre Dame), Adam Vartorella (Edison), Elizabeth Williams (Whitmer), Rachel Zbierajewski (Bowsher), and Bryan Ziegler (Bowsher).

The Arts Commission, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, Firelands Association of the Visual Arts and Oberlin College present the Ninth Congressional District Invitational Art Competition to honor artistic excellence demonstrated by area high school students. Marcy Kaptur has been presenting this opportunity to her district since 1981.

The Arts Commission is the longest standing arts agency in the state of Ohio that develops and promotes the arts in the community, serving Northwest Ohio since 1959. 1838 Parkwood Ave., Suite 120, Toledo, Ohio 43604. 419-254-ARTS

www.kaptur.house.gov           www.theartcommission.org