MY CRITERIA FOR JUDGING AWARDS IN AN ART SHOW
Judging artwork is very subjective. We all bring our own experiences, education and personal preferences to the process of judging artwork. I was just looking at an article in a magazine from my alma mater, The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. Four curators from the Academy were asked to pick the ten most important paintings from their amazing collection of American art. All four curators, only picked two of the same paintings, and two of each also picked two other paintings. All of the other selections were picked only once. I like to think that equally qualified judges, for the same exhibition would agree on maybe half of their selections, but again, it is subjective.
Here are the criteria, ranked by importance, I use when judging a group of artworks for awards; and although the priorities or words might be different, I think most judges would have a very similar set of criteria:
IMPACT: Often times my first impression of an artwork, “Wow, this is really great”, is a very strong indication of how good it is, at least in my opinion. This “impact” is really a combination of all the other criteria that follows: originality, design, content, craftsmanship, style, and presentation. This usually means a piece which I would like to own myself, and could enjoy and appreciate every time I looked at it. “Gee, I wish I had done that!” This first impression usually doesn’t change no matter how many times I study the piece, although I might see another work which has even greater impact and surpasses the first one.
ORIGINALITY: The artwork must be original, and this should go without saying. Most exhibitions or shows would have this as the most important requirement for even entering the competition. That is not to say that the artist might have been inspired in some way by the style, content, or design of another artist or artwork. If it is done creatively, some image might be appropriated and then carried further or presented in a new way, but this is a very gray area to enter. Someone once said the way to be recognized as a great artist is to do something that has never been done before or do something in a better way. Not an easy task.
DESIGN: The success the artist has in utilizing the abstract elements, such as color, line form, etc. and the design principles, such as repetition, contrast, movement, etc into a composition which is both visually exciting and unified is one of the most important (and challenging) aspects of visual art. To me all of the greatest art, whether a realistic painting created three hundred years ago or a conceptual piece created today has to work in this way to be great. I can enjoy and appreciate the composition, not matter what the style, medium, period, etc.
CONTENT: For an artist working in a representational or realistic manner, this would be the subject matter, how the subjects are combined, the symbolism, the narrative, the emotions it evokes or the message, if any that it presents. For the non-representational or abstract artist, it is more about the design and visual excitement and possibly the feelings it evokes. Learning to read this content comes from education, especially in fine art, experience and being perceptive and sensitive to the artwork.
CRAFTSMANSHIP: Technique would be another way of saying this. Some people might rank this as the most important, and it is certainly something that everyone can appreciate, even if they don’t know anything about art, except they know what they like.
For me, compared to the first four items on my list, it really isn’t as important in determining how good a work of art is considered. If it plagiarized from another work or if the composition is poor, the technical skill in rendering, for example, can’t make up for those shortcomings. Each medium, drawing, painting, ceramics, photography, etc. each has its own character, so the best art usually reflects that character.
STYLE: The best artists develop their own style, voice, or way of working. If I see a painting by Cezanne that I have never seen before, whether in a book or in a museum; I almost always recognize it as a Cezanne; by the style in which it is painted. Again this is made up of many elements: the subject matter, the design, the techniques, the color, all of which identify it as by that artist. And again, it is the experience of looking at and studying art which gives us this ability. Some artists work in this same style all their lives. Today it is more common for artists to evolve through several styles or mediums, some very gradually and others making dramatic changes. Obviously you can’t determine this style from one artwork, but for most judges, viewing a body of works by the same artists, they usually like to see a consistent style, at least throughout the same medium.
PRESENTATION: This is probably the least important of my criteria and therefore, last on the list. Having said that, everything else being equal, it is important how the artwork is presented. An ornate frame which overpowers a subtle work or a strange colored and poorly cut mat, does harm the impact of the artwork itself. To me, it also says something about the perception, sensitivity and understanding of the artist. Good presentation can also help a lesser artwork look better.
So there you have what I look for in judging works of art. You will have your own criteria, and fact that we agree or disagree is one of the wonderful things about art that makes it interesting.
James Warwick Jones, Juror
Juror’s Notes on the art of This Century Art Gallery 2014 Member’s Show
1st Place Carlton Abbott “Flick of the Switch” Acrylic
Beautiful, knock your socks off color. The artist has made a very thoughtful placement of each shape, stroke and element. I liked the panorama format and suggestion of ambiguous depth. This is a painting you could live with and enjoy every day. It is the painting with the most immediate impact and the one I returned to after four viewings. It is different from anything I had seen over the years by the artist, but still recognized it immediately.
2nd Place Holland Wentz Etheridge “Five Friends” Graphite
Strong impact of the black and white and yet at the same time very beautifully rendered with softness and sensitivity. The artist has rendered wonderfully descriptive textures of denim, hair, leather, woven strap, etc. Look at the way the dog’s paws, men’s shoes lead back in perspective contrasted with the almost imperceptible diagonal perspective line in the adjacent white space. The subtlety and softness of the coke machine enhancing the feeling of space. Everyone’s looking the other way (like we may do when passing these folks).
3rd Place
Kevin Schrack “What is Not (Fidelity)” Photo Collage, Xerox, Sandpaper, Charcoal
The title echoes the mystery of the piece-not the realism of the scene, but how it was created. Part photograph, part drawing, sand paper sketches, graphite grid lines, soft charcoal passages, it is difficult to tell where one ends and the other begins. The suggestion of movement and the passing of time are suggested.
Juror’s Choice Pat Cowan “Noordam Feast Watercolor, Mixed Media
The artist has created a really beautiful watercolor, deftly composed and very accomplished technical command of the medium; pulling out all the stops. Wonderful color harmonies, contrast and repetition are strong points. I like the drawing elements with the variety of watercolor techniques.
Merit Awards:
Betty Anglin “My Dog is Loose, Where Did He Go?” Watercolor
Beautifully and sensitively composed with each pattern, mark, brushstroke, piece of paper and design element perfectly placed. I liked the title also!
Sue Danehy “Alena” Oil
The artist has created a beautifully rendered portrait in the best sense of the word. The painting not only captures the subject’s likeness but also her personality and character (I assume). We feel like we recognize and know the person.
Mundy Hackett “Kiss” Photography/ Digital Painting
Although I am not very familiar with the digital painting processes and techniques, this piece is very nicely composed and beautifully rendered. I enjoyed the fluid, subtle patterns of the different elements and the color sense.
Kathy Hornsby “Bike from Behind” Acrylic
I like the fluidity and movement of the forms, the limited palette, the warm underpainting showing through the cool grays. We recognize the subject and yet it is ambiguous and mysterious, both qualities that can be appealing in a painting.
Urlee O’Donnell “Engine No 1218” Watercolor
A very accomplished watercolor painting by the artist. I liked the subtle, limited palette and tonality of the piece. Nicely and freshly painted in this difficult medium.
Shirley Roby “Stillness” Graphite
“Stillness” is quiet, tranquil, subtle, relaxing and light-filled. This drawing is a wonderful piece of observation, rendering, feeling and emotion. The subtle but distinctive style is recognizable as a drawing by this artist also. I like the way the very subtle vertical line in the background serves to visually support the leaning figure.
June Skalak “Forest Patterns” Acrylic
The artist uses beautiful rich, dense, dark colors repeated, overlapping, connecting, blending, and suggesting. Pure nature, suggesting the forest patterns of the title reminiscent of the form Monet used to capture and suggest his water lilies.
Arthur Wycoff “Victorious” Photograph
The artist was standing in the right place and selecting and framing the photograph in the right way. At first it seemed too textured, but no, it‘s actually the straw in the adobe, the dry grasses, the dry soil, everything textured but magnified.
