Americas 2021 Paperworks

Americas 2021: Paperworks
January 15 through February 26
Walter Piehl Jr. Gallery
Northwest Arts Center
Minot State University
Minot, North Dakota

Juror: Aaron Coleman, Tucson, AZ

Reception & Online Viewing:
Thursday, January 21, 2021
6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
7:00 p.m. Gallery Talk and Awards
Best of Show, Merit and Purchase Awards to be announced at the reception.

JUROR'S STATEMENT

It’s always a privilege to jury an exhibition. Making roughly 50 selections from nearly 300 is a daunting task at first, especially when the entries are of such high quality. However, that feeling quickly dissipated as I made my way through the submissions.

I’m always impressed by the skill, ambition and inventive nature of creative humans, but it is the wide range in approach that inspires me most. It is particularly encouraging to see so many perspectives materialized during these difficult times. Some of the applicants attack our current (and past) social, political climate head-on while others offer reprieve in abstract sanctuary. Some of the artists present documentation of the world around us while others have convinced me to imagine a world completely separate from this one.

My selections for this exhibition, while guided by a desire to curate a cohesive display, were also based on a range of criteria including technical prowess, innovation and conceptual sophistication. I have much gratitude for all those who applied, allowing me a view into your spirits and minds. If you were selected for this exhibition, congrats. If you were not, please know that this is not necessarily a reflection of the quality of the work you submitted. Remember that there are opportunities abound and many will be yours for the taking.

TO ALL, we need your work more than ever. Keep making.

— Aaron Coleman

HISTORY OF THE JURIED EXHIBITIONS

The Americas 2000 juried competitions originated in 1970, when the art faculty at what was then Minot State College in north central North Dakota introduced a juried national exhibition to the art program with the intent of enhancing the visual arts experiences of students, the campus and the regional art community. This original “National Print and Drawing Show” would also provide a source for the purchase of quality contemporary art for a Permanent Art Collection.

In 1976, a gallery space was established in Minot State University’s Hartnett Hall for the display of art to the public. The juried competition continued and was retitled “Works on Paper” in its fourteenth year to permit a more liberal interpretation of what constituted a print or drawing.

In 1992, a second gallery was added in the new Gordon B. Olson Library, and the Northwest Art Center and its supporting Art Friends membership and board of directors were established to help guide the growing program. The juried competition was opened to international entries in 1993 and became “Americas 2000: Paperworks.” In 1995, a second annual competition, “Americas 2000: All Media” was added. “Americas 2000” was chosen to focus attention on the upcoming millennium and a special exhibition featuring the Best of Show Award winning artists from previous Americas 2000 competitions. A second “Best of the Best” exhibit helped Minot State University celebrate its centennial in 2013, and then toured to galleries across North Dakota and Montana.

“Americas 2018: Paperworks” was hosted as the inaugural exhibition in the Walter Piehl Gallery, a fitting start for the new Northwest Arts Center constructed in the lower level of the Gordon B. Olson Library.

Fifty years after the original call for entries, the Americas 2000 competitions are attracting cutting edge contemporary art from every state in the union as well as foreign countries, with two alternating annual versions, the “All Media” and “Paperworks.” The exhibitions have formed the foundation of an admirable Permanent Art Collection that is used for exhibitions, loans, research and teaching new generations of students. We are grateful to the many, many artists who have shared their work and their passion for art with our audiences throughout the years.


Artists and Works Selected
Awards:

Best of Show
Erin Wohletz
Knoxville, TN, USA
“My Friend Leda”
mezzotint, lithography and screenprint

Merit Award
Brandi Kole
Tucson, AZ, USA
“Woven”
mixed media

Merit Award
Noble Golden
 Seattle, WA, USA
“Zulu V”
mixed media, paper, encaustic

Merit Award
John Vinklarek
San Angelo, TX, USA
“Regulator”
cast paper

Merit Award
Kelsey Skordal
Storrs, CT, USA
“Reticent”
acrylic on paper

Merit Award
Dong Kyu Kim
Fort Lee, NJ, USA
“Becoming Blank#2”
paper receipts, thread, microfiber cloths
Best of Show and Merit Awards
Artists and Works Selected:

 

Christine Baum, Kings Park, NY, USA “Genuflect” block print repeating pattern, hand cut.
Kate Borcherding, Huntsville, TX, USA “Epiphany” lithography, relief, monoprint.
Ellen Burgin, San Francisco, CA, USA “Cross Section” oil on paper.
Jacob Crook, Starkville, MS, USA “All Sales Final” mezzotint.
Andrew DeCaen, Denton, TX, USA “Place (at Table)” lithography and screenprint.
Al Denyer, Salt Lake City, UT, USA “Borders (Isolation) I” ink on paper.
Al Denyer, Salt Lake City, UT, USA “Borders (Isolation) II” ink on paper.
William Dooley, Northport, AL, USA “Memory of Neowise” oil pastel and pencil.
Jacob Gibson, Denton, TX, USA “Happy Birthday” lithography, serigraphy, print reconstruction.
Noble Golden, Seattle, WA, USA “Red Queen” mixed media, paper, encaustic.
Noble Golden, Seattle, WA, USA “Zulu V” mixed media, paper, encaustic.
JoHannah Grosz, Minot, ND, USA “Technicolor Misery” silkscreen, collage.
JoHannah Grosz, Minot, ND, USA “Party of One” newspaper.
Michael Hower, Enola, PA, USA “The PRR” digital photography.
Brian Hutchinson, Hays, KS, USA “Epi-Center” mixed media print.
Eric Johnson, Hillsboro, ND, USA “Serendipity” reduction relief print.
Christina Kang, DeKalb, IL, USA “The Sweetest I Could Be” lithograph and chine collé.
Christina Kang, DeKalb, IL, USA “Rinse and Repeat” screenprint.
Dong Kyu Kim, Fort Lee, NJ, USA “Becoming Blank#2” paper receipts, thread, microfiber cloths.
Dong Kyu Kim, Fort Lee, NJ, USA “The Most Famous Stars and Stripes” paper receipts, thread, microfiber cloths, ticket.
Brandi Kole, Tucson, AZ, USA “Woven” mixed media.
Brandi Kole, Tucson, AZ, USA “Self Portrait” mixed media.
Jason Krem, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada “Idea of an Idea” varnished paper collage on polyester film mounted on wood board.
Joseph Lupo, Morgantown, WV, USA “LOST IN TRANSLATION: Plunger pal duties…” cmyk silkscreen.
Joseph Lupo, Morgantown, WV, USA “LOST IN TRANSLATION: small…mastered...inadequacies!?” risograph.
Atanas Mihaltchev, Deux-Montagnes, Quebec, Canada “Wave” white glossy Bristol paper, wooden stick.
Mike Pennekamp, Chicago, IL, USA “Ghosts” woodcut, chine collé.
Vinnie Ray, Providence, RI, USA “Portal_13” gouache paint paper assemblage.
Vinnie Ray, Providence, RI, USA “Portal_14” gouache paint paper assemblage.
Andrew Rice, Salt Lake City, UT, USA “Twenty Minutes Later” collage.
Nick Ruth, Rochester, NY, USA “Farmington Town Hall” etching, aquatint, spit bite, and drypoint.
Nick Ruth, Rochester, NY, USA “Pinnacle Hill” etching, aquatint, spit bite, and drypoint.
Kelsey Skordal, Storrs, CT, USA “We Gather At Night” artist book (edition of 3); ink, acrylic, and acetone transfer on paper.
Kelsey Skordal, Storrs, CT, USA “Reticent” acrylic on paper.
Ryan Stander, Minot, ND, USA “It’s Still True” letterpress.
Diane Stolz, Kansas City, MO, USA “Snow Creek” watercolor.
Cyane Tornatzky, Fort Collins, CO, USA “The Kiss” inkjet print, origami paper, adhesive gel.
Rhonda Urdang, Flagstaff, AZ, USA “Liberation of Harriet Tubman (1867)” mixed media collage on paper.
Rhonda Urdang, Flagstaff, AZ, USA “I’m Dreaming of Tearing Off Those Chains of Bondage” mixed media collage on paper.
John Vinklarek, San Angelo, TX, USA “Regulator” cast paper.
John Vinklarek, San Angelo, TX, USA “Deadbeat” cast paper.
Linda Whitney, Valley City, ND, USA “Blue Moon Butterfly Dancer” mezzotint.
Cleo Wilkinson, Brisbane, QLD, Australia “Then IV” mezzotint.
Brandon Williams, Nashville, TN, USA “From the Ground Up” multi-plate etching.
Eric Wilson, Chicago, IL, USA “Over the Air Waves Goodbye Buckaroo” color lithograph.
Erin Wohletz, Knoxville, TN, USA “The Eagle” mezzotint, lithography and screenprint.
Erin Wohletz, Knoxville, TN, USA “My Friend Leda” mezzotint, lithography and screenprint.
Christine Wuenschel, West Lafayette, IN, USA “Curled Kaylie” procion dye and wax paper.