Ceramics and Glass Chess Set by Gold Key Finalist Heather Chan from Mt. Tabor High School. Ms. Chan is the recipient of the Edward C. Brown Award.
WILSON, N.C. — February 3, 2020 — Barton College will welcome students from across the state to celebrate their creativity at the annual Scholastic Art Awards ceremony scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 9, at 1:30 p.m. in Wilson Gymnasium. This marks the 42nd year that Barton College has served as host and regional sponsor for the National Scholastic Art Awards for the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region. The featured speaker for the awards ceremony is Charity Valentine, Department Chair for the Fine Art and Music Program at Pitt Community College in Winterville.
Following a reception for Gold Key and Silver Key awardees and their families in Wilson Gymnasium, there will be an awards presentation for the award recipients beginning at 2 p.m. The ceremony is open to student Gold Key and Silver Key recipients, their families, and North Carolina arts teachers and principals. The Scholastic Art Awards Exhibition will be available for public viewing in the Barton Art Galleries February 9 through February 27.
Entries from all 50 states are submitted in the nationally renowned Scholastic Art Awards program. The program, created for middle and high school students, is designed to encourage student achievement, to recognize and applaud our fine arts teachers and to emphasize the importance of the visual arts in the school curriculum. Barton College is proud to host the Eastern/Central Regional District in North Carolina, representing 62 counties from the Piedmont to the Coast.
Dr. Gary Daynes, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Barton College, and Mark F. Gordon, director of the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region of the Scholastic Art Awards Program, will bring brief remarks during the program. Elizabeth Spaulding of the Scholastic Art Awards Regional Teacher Advisory Committee will present special awards to student recipients.
The Scholastic Art Awards entries for the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region were reviewed by professional art jurors at Barton College during the second week of January. This year, more than 2,400 entries were received. Students submitted artwork in a variety of categories, including: architecture, comic art, ceramics & glass, digital art, product design, drawing, fashion, film & animation, jewelry, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, video games, and art portfolio. Jurors are charged to select entries that they consider especially worthy of recognition.
The Eastern/Central North Carolina Region has an advisory committee composed of 10 art teachers. This year, the exhibition selection jury is composed of arts professionals and educators. In addition to Gold Key and Silver Key portfolios, there will be a significant number of Gold Key and Silver Key awards presented. These artworks will be displayed in the Barton Art Galleries.
Images of these finalist art works are sent to New York City for judging on the national level. Selected national works are invited for June exhibitions held at Parsons School of Design and the Pratt Institute. Honorable Mention Awards will also be chosen and listed at www.barton.edu/scholastics.
From the Gold Key artworks, the jury selected works for additional awards to be presented at the ceremony including five American Visions Nominees, as well as special regional awards including the Edward C. Brown Award, The Wilson Times Award, the North Carolina Art Education Association Award, the Jurors’ Choice Portfolio Award, the Emerging Visions Award, the Governor’s Student Excellence Award, and the Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park Recycled Materials Award.
The 2020 American Visions nominees include Camden Snyder from Greensboro Day School, Lorelei Lin and Hami Trinh from the UNC School of the Arts, Cora Layher from West Forsyth High School, Heather Chan from Mt. Tabor High School, and Tessa Dahlmann from William C. Enloe High School. Summer Howell from Longleaf School of the Arts is the recipient of the Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park Recycled Materials Award. Annette Curti, from West Forsyth High School is the recipient of the North Carolina Art Education Association Award. Reed Rosania, from West Carteret High School, is the recipient of The Wilson Times Award. Lauren Miller of Cardinal Gibbons High School is the recipient of the Jurors’ Choice Portfolio Award. Xiaotong Luo, from Champion Learning Center, is the recipient of the Emerging Visions Award. Heather Chan from Mt. Tabor High School, is the recipient of the Edward C. Brown Award.
The exhibition of Gold Key and Silver Key artworks will run from February 9 – February 27 in the Barton Art Galleries located in Case Art Building. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. and by special appointment. For additional information, please contact Bonnie LoSchiavo at blloschiavo@barton.edu or call 252-399-6559.
About the Speaker —
Charity Valentine is a photographer and maker from Eastern North Carolina. She earned a Bachelor in Science degree in Printmaking from Colorado State University in Pueblo. Her interest in photography developed when she joined the United States Air Force and served as the editor of the Wright Times newspaper for Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. After leaving active duty military service, she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Photography from East Carolina University (ECU).
Valentine currently serves as the Department Chair for the Fine Art and Music Program at Pitt Community College in Winterville, where she teaches subjects ranging from Visual Art Portfolio, Methods, and Material to Digital and Traditional Photography.
Currently, her work is focused on the Eastern North Carolina landscape and the impact humans have on the open spaces that surround us. Since graduating from ECU, she has worked to expand her artistic practice to include as many different artistic mediums as possible, including metals (enameling, casting and chain making) woodworking, basket weaving, and glassblowing. Valentine exhibits both locally and nationally, and her work is in several public and private collections.
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