NW Art Exhibit Winners Announced and Presented

Showcase Specialist Trey Everett presenting the awards

The Northwest Minnesota Arts Council is excited to announce the Northwest Minnesota Art Exhibit Winners. Student and adult artists residing in a seven-county region including Kittson, Marshall, Norman, Polk, Pennington, Roseau and Red Lake recently entered the Northwest Minnesota Art Exhibit and competed for $2,300 in cash awards. The winners were recognized at the Northwest Minnesota Artist Reception in Lake Bronson on April 21.

Andy Hall with his 1st Place winner photo “Backlit Milkweed”

Exhibit cash award winners were chosen while the exhibit was on display at the Kittson County History Museum in Lake Bronson by qualified juror and Grand Forks Artist Pat Danielson. 

Danielson has been an active, well known visual artist for decades and is a member of the River Forks Watercolor Society and of Arts for Vets. She has a B.S. in Education from the University of Missouri in Columbia. Of the exhibit, she said, “What a pleasure it was to see the rich display of art at NWMAC’s show at Lake Bronson! As this year’s juror, I viewed each piece several times. While technique is important, I looked for art that surprised with its original idea, showed clear intention, was well executed and presented, and especially that drew me back to learn more about it.

This exhibit showed a wide variety of media — paintings, ceramics, fiber arts, sculpture, photography, fused glass, mosaic, assemblages, digital art — in many sizes and many shapes! Some of the treasures offered were small works and made no less impact than large ones. Congratulations to all the artists who entered this exhibit. Art is a community where everyone can participate. I hope you will continue to show your work, learn from one another, and support each other. You all win — with or without prizes awarded.”

Juror Pat Danielson at the NW Art Exhibit in Lake Bronson

Walk through the exhibit at https://youtu.be/EeSvf3_tVVg.

Exhibit Awards include:

Adults:

1st $500 Andy Hall of Climax for photography “Backlit Milkweed”

2nd $300 Irene Bertils of Crookston for watercolor painting “Warm Summer Evening “

3rd $200 Aliza Novacek-Olson of Roseau for folk/traditional wool “Solitary Qoshmas”

Merit $100 Michael McColl of Lengby in drawing “You're Getting Very Sleepy”

Merit $100 Betsy Saurdiff of Grygla for folk/ traditional porcelain “Pitcher”

Merit $100 Elizabeth Kitchell-Rockstad of Ada in mixed media “No Constraints”

Merit $100 Sara Jo Trangsrud of Thief River Falls in sculpture “Bursting Out”

Merit $100 Gail Ose of Thief River Falls for fused glass “The Dreams We Hold Sacred”

People’s Choice $100 Debbie Aune of Gatzke

Irene Bertils of Crookston with her 2nd place winning watercolor painting

Aliza Novacek-Olson with her award winning piece (3rd Place)

Debbie Dahl Aune received People’s Choice in the adult category

Students:

1st $300 Brigitta Novacek of Roseau in acrylic painting “Valorous”

2nd $150 Anita Foster of Thief River Falls for mixed media “Ruth”

3rd $100 Mary Jane Crane of Red Lake Falls for drawing “Beauty in Self-Image”

Merit $50 Kyleigh Halvorson of Fosston for drawing “Iris”

Merit $50 Kaytlyn Knutson of Red Lake Falls for digital art “Orion”

Merit $50 Mason Grivno of Felton for sculpture “German Wirehaired Pointer”

Merit $50 Mahli Holter of Red Lake Falls for mixed media “Almagations”

Merit $50 Izzy Swenson of Lancaster for painting “Purple Iris”

People’s Choice $50 Dana Brown of Lancaster

Student 1st place winning art by Brigitta Novacek of Roseau

Merit winning drawing “Iris” with the student artist Kyleigh Halvorson of Fosston. This will hang in Senator Mark Johnson’s office.

Fourteen exhibit pieces of student and adult art were chosen to be included in the Traveling Art Exhibit, which will travel this next year to area libraries. Watch for the schedule to be announced and for it to arrive in your community. Five exhibit pieces of student art were also chosen to be hung in the hallway of Senator Mark Johnson’s office in St. Paul. These students and their work include Lydia Christianson of Fertile “Omaha Jellyfish,” Kyleigh Halvorson of Fosston “Iris,” Carter Lee Johnsrud of Goodridge “A Broken Heart,” Dana Brown of Lancaster, (Kittson Central) “Jesse and Walt,” and Melody Voeltz, of Lancaster “Barred Owl.”

Kittson Central Student Dana Brown with his art “Jesse and Walt.” This will hang in Senator Mark Johnson’s office. Brown also received the People’s Choice Award in the student category.