WILSON, N.C. – Barton College will welcome students from across the state to celebrate their creativity at the annual Scholastic Art Awards ceremony scheduled for Sunday, January 23. This marks the 33rd 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 Linda A. Carlisle, Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources.
Following an ice cream social for Gold Key awardees and their families in Wilson Gymnasium on the Barton campus at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, there will be an awards presentation for the award recipients beginning at 2 p.m. The ceremony is open to student Gold Key Award recipients, their families, and N.C. arts teachers and principals. The Scholastic Art Awards Exhibition will be available for public viewing in the Barton Art Galleries beginning Jan. 24.
Carlisle was named Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources in January 2009. Under her direction, the Department of Cultural Resources is dedicated to being the leader in using the state’s cultural and heritage resources to build the social, cultural, and economic future of North Carolina. Secretary Carlisle works on local, state, and national levels to communicate the impact that Cultural Resources has in attracting and retaining jobs, enhancing the education of children and lifelong learners, and growing stronger communities. An experienced corporate executive, entrepreneur, and community activist, Secretary Carlisle earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Wake Forest University. She began her career in banking and later started her own business, which was headquartered in Greensboro and served all of central and western North Carolina. Ten years later, she sold the business and remained as president until 1997 when she turned her focus to community and educational interests. Secretary Carlisle is a committed community leader and has served the boards of the Chamber of Commerce, Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro as well as various roles with United Way, United Arts Council, Piedmont Craftsmen, Inc., and the Girl Scouts.
Entries from all 50 states are submitted for competition 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 art 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.
Contributors to the program include the Visual Arts Department of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, the Wilson Chamber of Commerce, Stan Corbett of Corbett Reproductions, Framer’s Alley of Elm City, and the Office of Enrollment Management at Barton College. A donation for the program was also made in honor of Sophia Bambalis, 2007 Forsyth Country Day alumna, for her inspiration in the visual arts.
Dr. Norval C. Kneten, president of 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. Heidi Wicker, chair of the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region of The Scholastic Art Awards Advisory Committee and the Visual Arts Lead Teacher for Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, will present special awards to student recipients.
The Scholastic Art Awards entries for the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region are received at Barton College during the first week of January. This year, approximately 1,975 artwork entries and an additional 59 portfolios from 124 schools were presented for judging. Students, through their teachers, 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, art portfolio, and photography portfolio. Jurors are charged to select entries that they deem especially worthy of recognition.
The Eastern/Central North Carolina Region has an advisory committee composed of eleven art teachers. This year the exhibition selection jury was composed of teachers, gallery directors and professional artists.
Two hundred and thirty pieces were selected as Gold Key Awards for the exhibition as well as 12 portfolios. Digital images of these finalist art works will be sent to New York City for judging against other regional winners for the national exhibition held in June at the Corcoran Gallery, Washington, D.C. Also sent to New York will be the works of five American Vision Award (Best of Show) nominees, including: Charlotte Harrison, grade 11, Northwood High School; Leah Bryson, grade 12, Cardinal Gibbons High School; Catherine Kennedy Garrett, grade 11, Panther Creek High School; Larry Rodgers, grade 10, R.J. Reynolds High School; and Travis Bordley, grade 12, Durham School of the Arts.
There also were 251 Silver Key Awards chosen from the individual entries submitted as well as 10 portfolios. A list of award recipients and images of their artwork is available on the Barton Art Galleries’ web site at http://www.barton.edu/galleries/scholastics.htm.
From the Gold Key artworks, the jury also selected works for additional regional awards to be presented at the ceremony including the Barton College Award to Geneva Benton, grade 12, West Forsyth High School; “The Wilson Times” Award to Charlotte Harrison, grade 11, Northwood High School; the North Carolina Art Education Association Award to Sabrina Buchanan, grade 12, Eugene Ashley High School; the Governor’s Student Achievement Award to Anna Batts, grade 11, James B. Hunt High School; the Emerging Vision Award to Rayne Ozier, grade 8, Sallie B. Howard School; Jurors’ Choice Portfolio to Matt Bowen, grade 12, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Career Center; and the Edward C. Brown Award, which honors the long-time director of the Barton Scholastics Program, to Eileen Heilsnis, grade 12, Apex High School.
Blick Art Materials has graciously donated $200 of merchandise vouchers for classroom materials, which will be given to Peter Varisano, teacher of the Emerging Vision Award recipient.
The exhibition will run from Jan. 23 – Feb. 17 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 Mark Gordon, at 252-399-6474 or the Barton Art Galleries at 252-399-6477.
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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.