Display highlights unvarnished creativity

PHOTO COURTESY JEWEL CONNELLY
Ready for the exhibit — Museum of Florida Art CEO George Bolge and student Sakina Manji pose for a photo at the 23rd Juried Student Art Exhibition.

By BY JEWEL CONNELLY
Stetson University Senior/Museum of Florida Art In

posted Nov 29, 2012 - 7:46:48am

High heels, skateboards and Christmas lights ... dinosaur pieces, snarling wolves and bizarre X-rays. These are but a few examples of the 53 pieces of art that are currently on display in Stetson University’s 23rd Juried Student Art Exhibition at the Homer and Dolly Hand Art Center. The exhibition, which will remain open through Dec. 5, attracted an estimated 250 people from the community on its opening night Nov. 9.

The unique aspect of the student show is that any student, regardless of his or her major, may submit art. Considering the awards totaled $3,700 in cash and prizes, it is no surprise that many students took advantage of this opportunity by submitting 100 pieces of art. I even submitted something; however, I didn’t make the final cut.

“The show provides a forum for otherwise hidden talents to be displayed,” said professor Gary Bolding, chairman of the art department. “The event has grown and gotten more competitive over the years.”

This year’s guest judge, selected by the five exhibition jurors, was George Bolge, CEO of the Museum of Florida Art in DeLand. Bolge holds a Master of Arts from the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, with a specialization in Greek and Roman archaeology and connoisseurship. He also served as the executive director, and subsequently was appointed director emeritus, at both the Boca Raton Museum of Art and Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale.

“George is clearly somebody who knows good art,” said Bolding, “and it was great to have him as guest judge this year.”

During the past 38 years, Bolge has judged numerous shows at both the amateur and professional levels and stated that you have to judge an exhibition dependent on the overall quality of the pieces submitted. “Jurying amateur art is far more challenging,” said Bolge. “You are confronted with unvarnished creativity that reveals a diversity of views. Some works at this exhibition were regionalistic and reflected the environment, nature and society of the South. Others, by reason of their wit and absorption in their medium, lead us to a more acute consciousness of the condition of our existence.”

I had my favorites, but you decide. Admission to the Hand Art Center galleries is free and open to the public 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday. The Museum of Florida Art is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, and 1-4 p.m. Sundays. Both are closed on holidays.

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