Artists from Fairmont, Marion County; Augusta, Hampshire County; and Richwood, Nicholas County, won the top prizes in the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History’s (WVDACH) 23rd biennial West Virginia Juried Exhibition, which opened Sunday, Nov. 5, at the Culture Center, State Capitol Complex in Charleston.
The exhibit, featuring 89 paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings, photographs, mixed media and crafts created by 66 West Virginia artists, is cosponsored by the West Virginia Commission on the Arts. The exhibit will remain on display through Feb. 10, 2024. A list of all exhibitors can be found at https://wvculture.org/2023-west-virginia-juried-exhibition-artists-announced/.
John Williams of Renick earned a Merit Award of $500 for his piece Live Edge Cherry Table with Sculpted Stand (cherry wood sculpture).
Ten pieces in the exhibit will be purchased and become part of the West Virginia State Museum’s permanent collection. Jurors Stephen Wicks and Jennifer Kaplan, both of Knoxville, Tenn., selected three artists as this year’s $5,000 Governor’s Award winners, with one receiving the D. Gene Jordon Memorial Award, which is named for a former chairman of the West Virginia Commission on the Arts who died in 1989; seven pieces were awarded $2,000 Awards of Excellence; and an additional eight Merit Awards of $500 were chosen that are not purchase awards and do not become part of the museum’s collection.
The WVDACH proudly presents this biennial event in partnership with the West Virginia Commission on the Arts and with support from the West Virginia Legislature, which appropriates funding for the exhibition’s awards. The $33,000 in award money constitutes one of the largest endowments for a single exhibition in the country.
Many of the works on display are for sale and may be purchased through the closing of the exhibition. Photos of the 18 award-winning pieces can be found at: https://wvculture.zenfolio.com/p672359606.
