Tuesday, September 7, 2010

First Annual Juried Art Exhibition at Sitar Arts Center is Open to Artists of All Ages


Sitar Arts Center presents the inaugural juried exhibit, commemorating ten years of providing arts education. The Patricia Sitar 2010 Arts Expo will bring together the work of professional and student artists in the community to explore their perspective on their own communities, be it their home, family or peers, and how current environment, politics and social change are affecting that community. This event, with a different unifying theme each year, will become an annual celebration of the art created by Sitar’s internal and external communities, showcasing the diverse perspectives represented at the Center. The exhibit will be judged by three esteemed local artists: Sam Gilliam, Melissa Green and Maggie O’Neill.

Awards will be presented at the opening reception on Thursday, October 14 at 6:30 pm. The exhibit, which will be on display October 5 through October 30, and the opening reception on October 14 are free and open to the public. The gallery is open 4:00 pm-6:00 pm on weekdays, 1:00 pm-2:00 pm on Saturdays and by appointment.

Sitar Arts Center is proud to have an esteemed panel for this juried exhibit. Sam Gilliam, a Washingtonian since the 1960s, is internationally recognized as one of America's foremost Color Field Painters and Lyrical Abstractionist artists. A dedicated teacher in the public schools and at the university level, Gilliam is one of the few successful, self-supporting African American artists who views the teaching of art as a mission. Melissa Green is the acting director of the Youth and Family Programs at the Corcoran Gallery of Art and an adjunct member of the faculty, in addition to being a practicing artist working in the fields of painting and printmaking. Maggie O’Neill is an established local fine artist and the Creative Director of O’Neill Studios, a decorative painting company and fine art studio that she founded in 2001.

Submissions for the exhibit are being accepted through September 11, 2001. Artists aged 10 to 15 are eligible for the Youth Category and all artists aged 16 and older will be entered into the Adult Category. Entrance is free to all Sitar Arts Center students. Youth may enter two pieces for $10 and adult submissions are $15 per artwork. Cash prizes will be awarded for first and second place in both categories. For more information about submitting work, please contact Loretta Thompson, Director of Program Operations, at (202) 797-2145 ext. 117 or at loretta@sitarartscenter.org.

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