Art Professor Earns Top Honor in Art Guild Show

Article courtesy of the Spartanburg Herald-Journal

Winners in the 34th Annual Juried Exhibition of the Artists’ Guild of Spartanburg were announced Friday at the opening reception for the exhibit at the Spartanburg Museum of Art.

The first place prize of $1,000 for Best in Show was awarded to Teresa Prater, chair of the Department of Art and professor of Studio Art at Converse College, for "Demeter," a digital photograph.

Mary Robinson, juror for the show, singled out the piece for its energy, adding, "The blending of the human form and the vegetation was compelling, and the use of color was also striking."

Jane Allen Nodine took the second place award of $750 for "Trace 018," a print made from pigment mixed with melted beeswax and resin fixed by heat. Michael Slattery won the third place award of $500 for his ink work titled "Broadway." The Jean and Horace Smith Memorial Special Award of $250 was presented to Terry Davenport for a photograph titled "Lines of Dawn."

Merit awards went to the following: Carolina Gallery Award, $250, David Benson, "A Bird’s Watch"; Southeastern Printing, $100, Stephen Heeren, "Country Road"; Aim Mail Center, $100, David Datwyler, "Banksia." Stephen Stinson received a $50 gift certificate for his photograph "Rails."

Robinson, a visiting assistant professor at the University of South Carolina who teaches all levels of printmaking, selected the 75 pieces that make up the show as well as the award winners. "I was surprised at the variety of work that I saw," Robinson said of the 198 entries. "Before I started choosing or removing pieces, I took a look around the whole body of work and found the range remarkable. When I finished, I was struck by how many of the artists whose work I had seen turned out to be familiar names to me. Enjoying this area as I do, it also occurred to me what an effect nature has on so many of the pieces in the exhibit."

The juried exhibition is the final show at SAM in the Spartanburg Arts center before the move to the Chapman Cultural Center in September.