The Tabernacle was transformed into a carousel of local art Monday for this year’s All Island Art Show, an opportunity for Vineyard artists to show off their best work and win prizes.
Acrylic, oil, photography, mixed-media and sculpture were just a few of the categories represented. Each one had its own panel of judges comprised of prominent Island artists and experts.
Photographer and judge Michael Blanchard owns a gallery in Oak Bluffs. He said the contest has a legacy of platforming artists who are early in their careers or looking to strengthen their place in the Island art scene.
“This originally started because people couldn’t get in the galleries,” he said. “Amateur and emerging artists... started the show just so they [could] show work.”
Bricque Garber, of West Tisbury, displays her mixed media and collage pieces at Cousen Rose Gallery. Her collage called Honey won first place in its category.
Ms. Garber was excited to show off her pieces, many of which are inspired by political events. A piece on Russia’s war in Ukraine featured jagged blocks of corrugated cardboard.
“All my work is paper and sometimes a little bit of fabric... and I get it wherever I can find it,” she said. “When I’m traveling, I go to hotel libraries where they have free books and tear them up.”
Logan Hines, a rising high school senior from New Jersey, entered a graphic art piece made with marker and colored pencil that won second place in its category. She said it was her first time entering an art show.
“It’s supposed to represent happiness from the inside,” she said of the portrait.
Many artists had booths surrounding the Tabernacle where they sold prints of their work. Kamar Dehaney, who recently graduated from the regional high school, creates pen, graphite and marker drawings of original characters.
He said that all of his characters have a story behind them and that he’s hoping to begin writing a graphic novel.
“[The stories] live inside of me for now, but I’m trying to get my novel started,” he said.
This year’s best in show winner was Mary Beth Daniels, awarded for her alpaca, sheep, silk and mohair wet and needle-felted piece entitled Illumination. The work depicts an Oak Bluffs cottage decorated for Illumination night and was made with fibers from the animals on her farm.
Ms. Daniels said she’s grateful to have won the award and to be part of the Vineyard art community.
“I’ve been doing this for a few years and one of my children actually encouraged me to put myself out there,” she said. “It’s such an affirmation... I’m really happy and excited that people love my work.”
For the judges, the hardest part of the job is narrowing the field into just a few winners — especially given their personal connections to many of the entrants.
Despite this challenge, judge and Island artist Holly Alaimo says she wishes the field were even bigger.
“We want everybody,” she said.
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