52nd Hamilton Current winners

Hamilton, Ohio – The verdict is in.

Excellence.

L-R: Wilson, Glass and Baker

The 52nd Hamilton Current juried art exhibition officially launched Saturday, April 26, at the Fitton Center for Creative Arts with a gallery-opening celebration featuring the announcement of all the prize-winning artworks.

Linda Glass of Lebanon took Best in Show honors – and a $500 cash prize – for a trio of paintings: Green Sees Red, Slither and Sprout and Aspiring Blooms.

“Inspiration happens for me while I’m painting,” Glass said. “I don’t necessarily start with a plan of what I want to paint.

“I’m always going for something that is bold, colorful, attention grabbing. I want people to feel those positive elements when they see my work.”

Jurors awarded the $300 second prize to JJ Baker of Cincinnati for a pair of his mixed-media collages – i think i was high that night at my parents place and i was in teacher mode gesticulating wildly and claire took some bitchin photos - and the $200 third prize to Roscoe Wilson of Hamilton for his sculpture, Plastic Containment Unit PCU-21.

Sandra Palmer Ciolino of Cincinnati, Karen and Kevin Houtchens of Lawrenceburg, Deb Jones of Okeana, Cynthia Malora-Sturdevant of Cincinnati, Kat Rakel-Ferguson of Lakeside Park, John Wolfer of Loveland and Clinton Wood of Cincinnati all earned honorable mentions for their work.

In addition to the cash awards, the top three artists and all the honorable mention winners received a year-long family membership to the Fitton Center.

Director of Exhibitions Cathy Mayhugh said the biennial all-media competition drew a record 313 submissions from 117 artists.

“I'm grateful to every single artist who submitted work for the jury,” she said. “It takes some courage to give it a try. The resulting show is an exciting representation of so many creative perspectives.”

Miami University Assistant Professor of Ceramics Richard W. James and Clifton Cultural Art Center Gallery Manager Emily Versoza served as jurors, winnowing the entries down to 76 pieces by 56 artists and selecting the winners.

“I'm drawn to artwork that reaches for something beyond what the maker can fully articulate, something too nuanced or ineffable for language,” James said. “To me, powerful art expresses what words haven't yet pinned down.

“It’s less about the finished object and more about the process - the search, the struggle, the unresolved. The tension of that journey leaves its footprint within the work, a trace of the maker’s effort to grasp the intangible.”

“When selecting award winners, I looked for pieces that demonstrated both technical skill and conceptual clarity,” Versoza said. “Works that stayed with me long after viewing, and that felt resolved yet open to interpretation.

“I was particularly drawn to pieces that showed a boldness in material, and that pushed the boundaries of their medium without losing clarity of vision. Whether through levity, meticulous process, vibrant abstraction, personal narrative or relationship to art historical context, each selected work offered a distinctive voice and a compelling reason to exist in the world.”

“I’m just thrilled with the job they did,” Mayhugh said of the jurors. “They were very much aligned in what they saw and selected. It was a lot of work, but they said they loved having so much strong art to see. Emily said, ‘We’re spoiled for choice,’ which was a good way to put it.”

The 52nd Hamilton Current exhibition remains on view through June 27.

“The exhibition feels both grounded in place and time, and expansive in the questions the individual artists pose with their work,” Versoza said. “(It is) a testament to the creative vitality of this region and to the Fitton Center’s role in nurturing it.”

Fitton Center galleries are always FREE and open to the public during regular hours (10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays), as well as during select evening and weekend events.

Take a look at some photos from the 52nd Hamilton Current exhibition opening celebration in the gallery below.

The Fitton Center for Creative Arts is located at 101 S. Monument Avenue on the Riverfront in downtown Hamilton, Ohio.

Building Community Excellence through the Arts and Culture