The public is invited to a sneak preview of 48 original works of art that will brighten the streets of downtown Owen Sound this summer in the form of art banners. The Art Banner Committee will be unveiling the banners at the Farmer’s Market at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 16th.
The 48 images selected were chosen by an independent jury from 216 submissions by 83 artists. Works by two students, Meagan Freer and Hollis Kate SanCartier, were among the winning entries. Jurors included: Aly Boltman, director of the Southampton Art Gallery; Ron DeBoer, owner of Gallery DeBoer Fine Art and Jazz; Leigh Greaves, a local art patron, Rachel Monckton, collections manager for the Tom Thomson Art Gallery; and Steven White, a mixed media artist.
“We sought works that were strong enough to visually catch the eye of pedestrians and passers-by while keeping in mind that the composition needed to translate well onto a vertical space,” the jurors wrote. “In the end, we tried to craft a selection that included a range of mediums, techniques, atmosphere and subject matter that would give the viewer a moment of joy, and a chance to appreciate the value of art in our community.”
The artists’ names were withheld from the jury until after the selections were made. They were categorized so that only one piece by each artist could be chosen.
The jury selected the winning artists in late April, and the banners sold out within weeks, covering the full cost of production. The banners will be hung along 2nd Avenue East on the Victoria Day weekend and will move indoors to other public locations during the winter months. Next spring, the banners will become the property of the individual donors.
“We should all consider ourselves lucky to live in an area where arts are cultivated and embraced, and in a town that has been able to harness all of that talent into a tangible, grassroots downtown beautification project,” the jurors wrote.
The art banner project is run by a group of volunteers interested in building broad community support for local artists and a venue to display their work in the form of street banners. After a successful inaugural year on the Owen Sound harbour in 2009, City Council approved the exapnsion of the banners to mainstreet downtown for 2010.
For more information, or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Kate McLaren
Chairperson, Owen Sound Art Banner Committee
Phone: 519-538-1897
E-mail: mudtown@bmts.com
or Ted Renner,
Owen Sound Art Banner Committee
E-mail: tedrenner@me.com
