Tuesday night marks the opening of the Northern National Art Competition at Nicolet College.
The exhibition features 86 works from around the country. Visual artist James Pace selected the pieces. At the opening reception Pace will speak about why he chose the works he did, and announce the winning recipients of $8500 in total prize money. Pace says the selections in the show represent a wide variety of media, styles and subjects.
“I think I was trying to select the best work period. Regardless of genre or type or approach or style, anything like that. Of course I have my preferences and I work a certain way but – I find it thrilling to see the diversity.”
Pace hails from Oklahoma but now teaches at the University of Texas at Tyler. He says in addition to looking at presentation and technical criteria, he’s looking for how well a piece of art communicates with the viewer.
“Visual art is a communication endeavor. We are trying to touch other people with our work and suggest, do we share an experience here or this is my experience. I’ve observed these kind of things, I find poetry in this kind of situation.”
The opening reception begins at 5 pm Tuesday at the Nicolet College theater building, and tickets must be purchased in advance. The show will be up in the gallery at Nicolet College through September 6th.
