State fine arts showcase a success

Karen Thurlow, the conference’s local chairperson from the Fremont Area Art Association, said the showcase at Fremont Middle School as well as art instruction classes hosted at both FMS and the Gallery 92 West in downtown Fremont were well-attended and she’d gotten positive feedback.

“I think it’s been very successful, and actually I have seen several town people come through,” she said. “I’ve talked to a few, and that makes me very happy because so often I think the people in town think the art exhibit is … they think it’s for the artists. Who do you think we create this stuff for? We create it so people can see it and appreciate it. That’s why we do it.”

Three members of the Fremont Area Art Association were honored with awards at the show.

Chris Bristol won an Award of Excellence for a watercolor painting titled, “Recess is Over,” and also nabbed an honorable mention for another watercolor titled, “Hidden Treasures.”

Sara Wamsat was also recognized, nabbing an Award of Excellence for her mixed media entry titled, “Quid Pro Quo.” Wamsat also got an honorable mention for a collage/mixed media entry titled, “Lettuce Bee.”

Randy Ruppert received an Award of Excellence for his hand-engraved brass piece of art titled, “Need a light?”

Thurlow said the good showing by the three FAAA was a testament to the great art scene in Fremont and Dodge County.

“We are very active, and while we may not have as many artists, we have a lot of art supporters who support us, which we need, of course,” Thurlow said. “But, the thing about the Fremont Area Art Association — and it’s always been true — is when you see the artwork, it’s very diverse. We have a lot of different people doing different kinds of things.”

The big winner of the weekend showcase was a painting by David Dorsey called, “The Readers, which was tabbed by judges as the winner of Best of Show at the 59th annual State Exhibition of the Association of Nebraska Art Clubs. Dorsey is a member of the Sand Painters Art Club, and he won $3,500 for his painting.

In total, there was more than 300 works of art on display at the three-day showcase. Nebraska artists from 35 art clubs across the state entered their pieces of art, which ranged from wood carvings and paintings to drawings and photographs.

Thurlow, the conference local chairperson from the Fremont Area Art Association, said 51 total artists were recognized with awards ranging from Best of Show and the Nebraska Life Award to Awards of Excellence and Honorable Mention.

Aside from the art show, there was also a robust slate of art instructional classes going on Thursday through Saturday at Gallery 92 West in downtown Fremont, which Thurlow reported were well received.

Thurlow said she was happy to see people attend the show — which had last been hosted in Fremont in 2010 — because, “they will see what wonderful artists we do have” in Nebraska.

“I think (Nebraska artists) are way ahead in a lot of the areas of art. I have seen art on both coasts and ours is right up there. We’re not behind,” she said. “You don’t see the same thing over and over and over. I judged a few shows in different towns in Nebraska, and every artist has a mind of their own and comes up with something unique.”