The City of Gainesville Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs is pleased to announce the opening of Regional Award Winners Exhibition, an exhibit of art work by the five artists who were awarded special recognition in the 2010 Regional Juried Exhibition.  Top honors in last years Juried Show went to Ft. Lauderdale artist Ray Olivero for his dramatic painting of The Venetian. For the current exhibit, Ray has selected four additional works to represent his vividly colorful style.

Four other artists will have their work included in the show. Sandra Hadley, who won an “Award of Excellence” last year for her work titled Things Aren’t Always What They Seem will be exhibiting six of her realistically detailed charcoal drawings in this year’s show. Photographer Steve Auer has picked five images that he believes reflect his passion for “the great state of Florida!” and the beauty of its wilderness areas. Steve, who has frequently worked in underwater photography, has dedicated his part of the show to renowned cave diver and photographer Wes Skiles who died in a recent diving accident.

Nancy Gralla Mason, Mask-Tiger-Fish, 2010, colored pencil, ink w/collage	Grace Leal, The Spinster, 2010, print, 15” x 11”

Honorable mention went to two other artists represented in this years exhibit. Grace Leal’s dream-like mixed media works tell another story, one that “carries multiple meanings and crisscrosses historical, political, social and cultural comments.” Eerie, yet strangely familiar, Leal’s somber images reveal a world that is intensely personal yet filled with cultural archetypes. The fifth artist, Nancy Gralla Mason, also shows us a glimpse of a world filled with personal narratives and strangely juxtaposed images. Wildly colorful yet oddly sinister, her mixed media creations beg us to “figure them out.”  

Sandra Hadley, Things Aren’t Always                         What They Seem, 2008, charcoal on paper,                                           21.5” x 16.25”	Steve Auer, Frigates of the Tortugas,                         2008, photograph, 49” x 19”

We invite you to see for yourself this exhibit of work by five deserving artists whose talent and passion has resulted in a show that tests the limits of subject, style and content.

A reception is planned for June 9 from 5 to 7 p.m. Please plan to join us to view the exhibition and meet some of the artists.