By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
Sandra Jane Heard planned to go to the Black Swamp Arts Festival last year.
It would have been her first time. Then storms washed away the art show on Sunday.
This year she knows she’ll be here. Heard, along with painter Aaron Pickens and printmaker Ross Mazzupappa, served as the jurors who decided what art would be included in the art show that extends down Main Street.
The three will return on the morning of Saturday, Sept. 7, to decide what artists will win the $5,850 in prize money including a $1,600 best of show award.
Heard expects that choosing those winners will be a challenge given the “exceptional quality” of the work she saw during the jurying process. And that does not include last year’s winners, who are automatically entered into the show.
Pickens stated: “Sometimes the sheer ‘wow’ factor that is inherent when an individual is a master in their particular discipline just can’t be appreciated by any other means than seeing their work first-hand.”
The juried art show will be open Saturday, Sept. 7 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 8, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. along Main Street. The Wood County Invitational featuring artists from within a 30-mile radius of Bowling Green will be in the parking lot on the corner of Main and Clough streets.
Gretchen Rohm, co-chair of the festival visual arts committee, said 246 artists applied for the 112 spots in the juried art show. That’s up from 208 last. About 40 percent of them are new applicants, she said.
For the invitational show, 73 applied for 50 spots, she reported. That’s consistent with last year.
Stacy Poca, visual arts co-chair, said that the festival has weathered last year’s Sunday cancellation. “If anything, we maybe had more referrals this year thanks to artists talking us up. We are considering a little recognition for those artists who braved the storm with us and are coming back.”
“I’ve always known it was one of the top shows in the area,” Heard said. “I always intended to go,” but other professional activities including a national fiber arts show she exhibited in precluded her attendance.
“This will be lovely to be see the works and view the festival,” Heard, a fabric artist, said, adding, she and her husband plan to hang around to enjoy the music as well.
Fellow juror painter Aaron Pickens has a long history with the festival. His former band Phantasmagoria performed on an auxiliary stage for teens in 2007, and the Toledo native had been attending long before then. He recalls hearing NRBQ on the Main Stage five years before.
Other memories include “watching a sculptor construct a horse with recycled plastic materials” as part of Artists at Work.
This year he’s experiencing the festival from the perspective of a juror.
In an email, he wrote: “The field of applicants for the 2019 Black Swamp Arts Festival was incredibly diverse in terms of media and sensibility. From aspiring artists to seasoned professionals, the caliber of the artwork submitted by the entrants varied, with each contributing a valuable voice to an evolving creative dialogue.”
Pickens said the festival celebrates art work that sometimes is ignored in an academic context.
Heard said that the entries were particularly strong in jewelry, which represents a fifth of the field as well as ceramics, and woodworking. She was surprised at the dearth of paintings. “There was still some good work
,” she said, even if the selection was not as broad.
Both Pickens and Heard said they look for a high level of craftsmanship. But there must be more than fine workmanship. “Something that has someone’s quintessential fingerprint on it,” Heard said.
The jurors also saw an image of the exhibitors’ booth layouts. “I wanted it to look professional,” Heard said. “I wanted a sense of approachability. I wasn’t drawn to those who had everything locked away. I was drawn to booths that invited the public in.”
“The presentation of the booth is a testament to how meticulous and professional the artist tends to operate,” Pickens said.
Sometimes the jurors were faced with “a group of entries that had a similar sensibility,” Heard said. “I choose the work that I thought had a chance to stand out. … This is a living for these people. I wanted them to them the opportunity to express their individuality.”
She also tried to make sure artwork at different price levels are available.
That makes it easier for festival goers to do their part — support the artists.
“They have to recognize that this is a livelihood for these people,” Heard said. “That’s why I enjoy going to festivals. You get to take something home that’s unique and that you can’t get anywhere else.”
