“This piece quietly demanded to be recognized.”
Best of Show at the Chicago Pastel Painters Exhibition
October, 2021
My painting “TWILIGHT” has been selected for Best of Show for the Chicago Pastel Painters’ 8th National Exhibit.
The Juror for Selections was Yael Maimon, a renowned artist from Israel, who examined submissions from more than 71 different artists hailing from the United States and Canada.
Paintings from 50 artists were accepted for this exhibition based on the following qualities:
- grabbed her attention longer than others
- creative interpretation of the subject / concept
- superior technical skills
- story-telling in a powerful way
- took her to a “different time & space”
- able to sense the artist’s interest and excitement about the subject.
The Juror who selected my painting for Best of Show was renowned painter Colette Odya Smith.
She said this about “Twilight”
“This piece quietly demanded to be recognized, for although it isn’t flashy, being worked tightly within a very limited color and value range, it is compelling. The obvious skill with pastel handling and rendering of the portrait is used to create the image’s own integral reality. The way a skillful sci-fi writer creates a believable world, the man in this painting kept calling me back to engage directly with him.”
– Collette Odya Smith (Judge of Awards)
On the Scene:
