The Juror's Perspective
Virginia Artists 2015 Juried Exhibition
Now open at The Charles H. Taylor Arts center, this annual competition is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the state showcasing the talents of many of Virginia’s finest artists and craftsmen. Cash awards totaling $6,750 are presented including a $1,500 Best in Show and awards in each media including drawing, printmaking, painting, photography, crafts, watercolor, mixed media and sculpture.
I sat down to talk with this year’s juror, Teresa Annas, to learn how she approached the task of selecting over 100 artworks in all styles, genres and media for this year’s exhibition.
Jeff Stern (JS): Why did you agree to be the juror for the year’s Virginia Artists 2015 Juried Exhibition, Teresa?
Teresa Annas (TA): I thought it might be a fun switch from writing about shows to participating in one as juror. And it has been! I was an arts writer for The Virginian-Pilot from 1986 until last November, but I should say I was a curator in Virginia Beach for two years just before I took that job, at the center now known as MOCA, though it was much smaller then! So I am accustomed to looking at art from the vantage points of various seats.
Also, I was attracted to the opportunity to look at work by hundreds of Virginia artists. I was interested to see what a wide swath of the commonwealth's artists were doing, thinking, making.
JS: How did you approach the task of making final selections from such a large group of artworks?
TA: I was tasked with choosing about 115 works from more than 700 entries. That's a lot of cutting. I was told to choose "the best work" from among these. However, I soon saw that there were more than 115 "best" works. What's a juror to do? So I came up with my own set of criteria so that, whenever I couldn't decide between this or that piece, I turned to those ideas. (Teresa ultimately selected 113 pieces for the exhibition.)
JS: Would you name those criteria?
TA: Well, sure. I looked for what struck me as arresting images or objects that made me think or feel something. I wanted to feel energy coming off the piece, frankly.
I also looked for a sure sense of craft, realizing that that is very subjective. To me, craft just means how something is made and sensibilities vary widely. But really, I mean that how the art is made -- how the paint is applied, or the clay piece is constructed and textured -- resonates with the form or content or subject of the piece.
JS: It does get complicated, doesn't it?
TA: I favored noncliched approaches to traditional subjects, such as paintings of the figure and landscapes. One example from among my selections is a portrait of a woman wherein the figure is clearly positioned as in a famous late 19th century portrait. Except the figure is of a type that is a polar opposite from this famous portrait, giving the work a little humor and something of a feminist edge. Not giving that one away! Your readers will have to come to the show and search for that one.
I also found myself inclined toward works that suggested a narrative. And of course that is because I am a writer in love with stories, right? We can't help who we are.
Finally, I felt very receptive to works that contained humor or wit, and I noticed quite a few that were handed in. Humor in art hasn't always been appreciated in the highest art circles, but it's a valid stripe of the human experience. I welcome it! Who would want to absorb deep, dark images all day long? Not me, thank you very much. And humor's not that easy to do, either.
JS: How much are your personal tastes reflected in your selections?
TA: I would say very much so. It's me looking at the images. In making my choices, what else do I have to go on but all the art I've seen over, geez, 30 years of looking hard, and all the great stuff and drivel I've read about art over that period of time. Not to mention my life. So it's me looking and responding.
That said, put 10 art writers in a room looking at the same collection of art, and there's a pretty good chance there will be a great deal of overlap in their choices.
JS: What was the hardest part about judging?
TA: Because of the criteria I felt I had to establish, I ended up having to leave out worthy works by artists I admire. That was a big ouch. I hated that!
JS: Did anything surprise you while reviewing the art submissions?
TA: Yes. I was amazed by the preponderance of really great photography using a wide range of techniques and attitudes. I also saw a lot of terrific figure paintings and, I'll say it again, a lot of funny, witty art.
I also noticed a number of self-portraits made in such a way that I began to think that the mobile-phone selfie has triggered this. I'd love to ask around about that. Maybe the selfie is making some people less shy about portraying themselves, ya think?
JS: Teresa, thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions and for all your hard work as this year’s juror. You are a joy to work with.
TA: Thanks, Jeff, it was my pleasure. And a special thanks to James Warwick Jones and Debbie Maida, they made the experience smooth and fun for me.
About Teresa Annas:
Teresa Annas covered the visual and performing arts, including art reviews, for The Virginian-Pilot from 1986 through 2014. She began chronicling the arts in Hampton Roads in the late 1970s, when she was a freelancer writing for local, state and national publications. In her 28 years at The Pilot, she wrote about a wide range of art, from contemporary glass to Rembrandt’s prints. While a fine arts major at Virginia Wesleyan College in Norfolk, she practiced numerous art forms, including painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography and ceramics. In 1984 and 1985 she was curator at the Virginia Beach Arts Center, which evolved into a major institution now known as the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art. She is currently an independent writer on the arts and lives in Norfolk.
The Virginia Artists 2015 Juried Exhibition continues through October 11th at The Charles H. Taylor Arts Center, for more information click here.
