Ellarslie Open awards prizes to 34 exhibiting artists; show continues

Thirty-four of the 126 artists with works showcased in the Ellarslie Open 37/38 at the Trenton City Museum, Trenton, N.J., received prizes across 10 categories and six special designations.
“I was deeply impressed by the range of work and diversity of artists who submitted for consideration,” said juror William R. Valerio, director of the Woodmere Art Museum of Philadelphia. “There was much excellence, and it was a challenge to narrow the field. Awarding prizes was even harder.”
Mikhail Gubin of Queens, N.Y., who won the Doug Palmer Award for Best in Show, Overall, for his surrealist painting “False Impressions” said, “It was a complete surprise for me, because there were so many wonderful works on display at the exhibition.”
Top category winners were: Digital, Matthew Borgen Philadelphia; Drawing, Morgan Shankweiler, Swarthmore; Fiber Arts, Edward Babiarz, Sinking Spring; Mixed Media, Mary McKay, Keyport, N.J.; Painting, Tian Hui, South Orange, N.J.; Pastels, Jacqueline Meyerson, Macungie; Printmaking, Marc Schimsky, Yardley; and Watercolor, Mark Schreiber, Chalfont.

The show’s chair and curator, Joyce Inderbitzin, said, “All of the artists used their talents and ideas to give expression to their insights on their chosen subject matter. While some of the pieces were chosen as prize-winners, all of them command our attention.”
Exhibition organizers awarded the President’s Award to Susan Parris, Princeton, N.J.; Curator’s Award to Patricia Hutchinson, Long Branch, N.J.; Ben Whitmire Emerging Artist Award to Vincent Bush, Philadelphia; Phoenix Art Supplies First-time EO Exhibitor Award to Christine Fortin, College Park, Md.; Installation Award to Aurelle Sprout, Lambertville, N.J.; and Stephen Bruce Award for Achievement in Unique Media to Asya Dodina and Slava Polischuk, Brooklyn, N.Y.
The Ellarslie Open, sidelined in 2020 by the pandemic, returned this year to fill five galleries with 136 artworks by 126 artists. It will remain on view through Oct. 3, with related artist and curator talks to be announced in the summer and early fall. Learn more at ellarslie.org/ellarslie-open-2021/ or call 609-989-1191.

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