Art enthusiasts and those looking for a change of pace from the usual entertainment fare offered in Starkville had a chance to tour the best art works from MSU students in the college of architecture, art and design Thursday night. The 33rd Annual Student Art and Design Competition gallery reception was held to honor this year*s winners and their works. A collection of more than 100 photographs, paintings, drawings, ceramics, sculptures and graphic design works was displayed at the free show.
All the artists were on hand to answer questions about their respective art works which were available for purchase. Winners were selected and their scholarships were handed out totaling more than $5,000.
Bill Andrews, gallery director for the art department, said the works were very interesting and proved to be some of the more difficult to judge.
“The works ranged from sculptures, drawings, paintings, photography, oil paintings, watercolors and graphic designs,” Andrews said. “All the pieces were unique, some quite unusual. These shows are always exciting because you get to see the new ideas and materials students are working with.”
He also said the show was one of the most exciting of the year. With over 300 entries entered in all categories, the show was a difficult one to produce and one of the most inspiring.
“The jurors for this year had a very hard time selecting the show as they do every year,” Andrews added. “Because of all these factors, it changes each year and that’s part of the appeal.”
Artist Wyatt Waters of Clinton and Katy Carter, an MSU graphic design graduate of Athens, Ga., served as competition jurors. Waters has been interested in art his whole life and has been painting for a long time.
“I think judging [art] is one person’s opinion,” Waters said. “By virtue of painting, I judge by trusting my gut instinct. If it makes an impression in my mind, that’s a good thing.”
Waters also talked about what makes a piece of art stand out to him and what qualities he looks for in an award-winning artwork.
“I like to do a run-through first and look at everything, then do drawings of the works that stand out,” Waters said. “The rules of art aren’t as important as the biggest criteria in my opinion, which is honesty. If I sense the artist tries to make a fluent effort to convey an actual idea, that stands out to me.”
Waters, 49, also said these art shows inspire him because the new pieces from a younger generation carry a different perspective on art, and are inspired by different things than what Waters was exposed to when he was their age.
“It’s invigorating to see these college students taking on the love of art and creating pieces of art that I’ve never thought of,” Waters said. “It’s amazing to see the possibilities for these kids and their art.”
The second judge, Katy Carter, has worked in graphic design for 12 years and taught it at a collegiate level for five years at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and the University of North Carolina. She has also judged competitions before at UTK for four years and pointed out her standards for judging different art works.
“I based my decisions on concept, visualization, typography and craft,” Carter said. “These categories are the ones I used when grading student work and judging portfolios in the past. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to be this year’s graphic design juror-it was an honor.”
The gallery show will run through Feb. 11., remaining open from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Monday through Friday and 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, call the department of art at 325-2970.