Thirteenth Annual Juried Exhibit at the Edge Center Gallery in Bigfork

This will be the thirteenth time the Edge Center Art Gallery in Bigfork invited artists to submit their work for judging by a juror. Sarah Brooke, MFA Assistant Professor and Director of the Art Department at the College of St. Scholastica is this year’s juror. The results will be 17 artists’ work on display in this annual Juried Exhibit which is on display from June 29 to July 29.  The opening day reception is on June 30th from 5 to 7PM. There is also a special “People’s Choice Award” selected by viewers. That award will be part of the reception and can be voted on June 29^th and up until 6PM June 30th. There is no charge for the gallery and reception. The Edge Center Gallery is next to the Bigfork School and is open from 10AM to 4PM on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.  

Sarah Brooke, this year’s juror and Assistant Professor of Art at the College of St. Scholastica, selected a wide range of entries that should be enjoyable to all who see the exhibit.  She received her BFA from the University of Minnesota and her MFA through a joint program between Studio Art Centers International in Florence, Italy and Bowling Green State in Ohio. She has exhibited locally, nationally and internationally and recently published a book of her paintings called “Portrait of and Artist.”  

Of the seventeen artists selected for this year’s exhibit four are new to the event. They are painters James Bzura and Tyler Evin, fiber artist Patricia Lovegreen, and sculptor Sherry Hoffman. The remaining artists chosen by Professor Brooke have previously exhibited in past shows. Among these are painters Sandra Thompson, Nikki Besser, and Jan Stenson; photographers Donna Rae Anderson, Audrey Johnson, Jill Johnson, Tim Lamey, and David Swanson; mixed media artist Sandra Boreen; print-maker David Nyssen; quilter Pamela Burns; basket weaver Cathryn Peters; and blown glass artist Jon Offutt. Altogether, 23 works of art by the 17 artists make up this year's 13th Annual Juried Exhibit.

The awards ceremony starts the evening of the opening reception at 6:15. A special thanks to the sponsors of the awards. This year they are: Best of Award by Kocian’s Family Market and two Awards of Excellence sponsored by Arvig Communications and First State Bank of Bigfork.  For the audience, the People’s Choice Award, sponsored by Bigfork Valley Hospital, is always special. It gives visitors a chance to see how their opinions compare to the juror. 

The Yellow Float photo (above) by Donna Rae Anderson from Deer River is an example of her work which she started at the age of ten using a Kodak Brownie. Her “…goal is to capture those moments when I am struck by the ‘WOW-ness’ of a scene…My greatest compliment is when told that my photograph looks like a painting…”

Northern Minnesota Artist Nikki S. Besser “…uses oil and mixed media as a means of capturing and recreating life’s most captivating moments on canvas…” (above)

From Crosby Minnesota, artist James Bzura shows his “…intent to birth art objects that declaim their existence as subjects experiencing history…” (above)

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Fargo’s Jon Offutt “…continues to represent the prairie landscape in glass...” (above)

Sandra Thompson from Bigfork says “I am an abstract artist…I’m very excited to find different mediums to explore. Encaustics attracted me for its glossy wax texture…” (above).

The Gallery invites you to come and see this Thirteenth Juried show and pick your favorite while enjoying a snack and seeing a variety of exceptional art. For more information go to  www.the-edge-center.org  Or come and visit Edge Center gallery which is next to the Bigfork School. The Gallery is open from 10:00 to 4:00 on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.