Wickford Art Association Gallery

1st Place

2nd Place

3rd Place

Addressing Nature

First Prize is awarded to this work for a few reasons.  The visual source material is very compelling.  Often discarded, junk mail is ripe for use by artists.  Similarly, the hoarding instinct that compels an artist to keep junk, especially the kind of junk that might take on a life of its own, is a hallmark of collage.  The unrelenting, repetitious use of banal objects, as seen in a lot of “outsider” art is yet another a strong characteristic of collage.  Most importantly, this work’s strong almost primitive design, heraldic composition and mesmerizing transitions are strong up close and from across the room.  While not conventional or traditional as collage, this piece seems both old and new.  It is quite original.

Theresa Girard

Hey-19

Second Prize is awarded to a very different kind of work.  The first time I saw this tiny piece, I instinctively picked it off the wall to cradle and examine it.  This work straddles an interesting place in collage by combining elements of two-dimensional collage and three-dimensional assemblage.  Two-dimensional elements wrap around the canvas to give the piece a strong presence as object.  Paint and wax materials fuse seamlessly with paper and fiber elements.  1930’s kitchen green, antique photographs, “playing cards”, and flourishes usually found in interior decoration come together to create a poignant narrative.

Mo Whalen

Shoes for Men

Third Prize is awarded to a classic collage that beautifully assembles various materials and elements in a purely abstract fashion.  The work of Kurt Schwitters and Joseph Cornell are strongly evoked.  While derivative in its conception, I could not overlook the skillful manner in which the materials are layered and composed.  The yellow window frame strikingly contrasts with the deep red image.  Materials alternately suggest natural growth and organic decay.  Dabs of sky blue are like small electric shocks in this carnal piece.  This piece is deft in all manners of design.

Honorable Mentions

Special Mention

Mildred Kelleher

Flight

Honorable Mention is awarded to a nifty little collage that combines printed material from magazines, freehand pencil drawing and other materials.  The contrast of herringbone weave in print and hatch mark in drawing is noteworthy.  The linear design of this piece is wonderful and the deep space that arises from this contrast of two-dimensional media is very exciting.  The unexpected use of feathers and asymmetrical composition contribute to the overall effect of this quirky piece.

Bev Silva

Taverna

Honorable Mention is awarded to this cut paper streetscape.  While the deep space of this image is immediately compelling the architectural references are sly.  One could almost miss the representation of a streetscape were it not for small fragments of hyper-real parts such as the plant.  Fine art papers co-exist with watercolor and magazine images.   A very painterly use of color brings surprising unity to this work.  This very small piece draws one in from across the room.

Jillian Barber

Reg & Irene

Judges Choice recognizes this humorous, skillful and clever collage.  The contrast of historic photographs, prismacolor drawing and vintage valentines reshape ones view of nostalgic imagery.  Nostalgia is the inevitable by product of piecing together old stuff. Yet this collage questions the very way in which memories are visually conveyed.  With the wedding day subject matter and singing birds and country house backdrop, this piece pokes fun at both nostalgia and collage itself.