Judging an Art Competition

Judging - in Art Competition would have to be one of the most difficult jobs in the world.

I have read a number of articles on different methods of judging art work, but really "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder", and I am sure that every artist who enters an art competition thinks that their entry should win.

Some of the winners of art competitions look like the judges have picked a winning artist's name out of a hat.  The finalists in one art competition, (which will remain nameless) which I saw recently, had many great and good paintings, but the winning entry was awful.  I think that a child could have given a better result than what was shown.  The winner also received a great big fat check for a large amount of money!   Now that was my view, but the next person to look at the winner might think that it is a great work of art!

One art show just closed and I was happy to see the people's choice had sold for a good sum of money, and that I thought that the painting was great.  I did notice that the winner of this art show did not sell.

This brings up the question of whether an artist paints for the sale of artwork or just paints for themselves...I am sure that there is no easy answer to this question.

Are there any art competition judges out there who would like to comment?

Ipswich Bridge, Queensland Australia

The bridge was just out of the water when the floods of January 11, 2011 inundated the city.

 If you look closely at the river bank you will see where the raging flood waters have ripped up the banks of the Bremer River.

Bremer River, Ispwich after the Flood

The Bremer River after the Flood

This picture was taken about a week after the floods in Ipswich on January 11, 2011.  If you look closely you can see that the mud level in really high.  The flood peak was reported as 18.5 meters, and this was enough to almost cover the main bridge connecting the Ipswich business district to North Ipswich. Usually the bridge is some 50 - 60 feet above the river level.

I plan to paint a number of pictures of this river in a series of painting which I will call "After the Flood", and hopefully I can commence painting in the next few weeks.

Ever since the flood, time for me has just become a blur, as I have so much to do and I always run out of time. 

There is light at the end of the tunnel, as the Insurance Company Assessors have looked through the house and hopefully reconstruction work will start within a week or two.

I really miss painting and I will be so glad to get back into the swing  of putting paint on canvas.



The Eyes of Saint Matthew

This painting had a very interesting and short life.  I was asked by an old friend of mine to paint in icon painting of Saint Matthew.  This friend of mine is a minister of religion and was happy to have the painting, which is larger than just the face I have shown here.  I finished the painting and posted it off to him and he hung it on his wall. 

Then my friend was robbed by two young religiously trained, but drunk thieves.  My friend came back from shopping to find a truck parked in his driveway and the robbery in progress.  The police were called and the robbers were caught in the act. 

My friend noticed that where the icon had been on the wall was now two crisscross knife marks and the painting was missing!  When questioned, by my friend and the police - the robbers admitted that the eyes of Saint Matthew were following them around the room.  They had cut the painting off the wall and jumped on it – totally destroying it.  My friend did say to the police that he wanted to have them charged.

I am somewhat pleased and sad (at the destruction of the artwork), but I am happy that the eyes in the painting pricked their consciences and provoked such a reaction!