Online Show

I would like to thank every artist who submitted work to this show. I personally know how much emotion and thought are invested in creating a work of art. It is a reflection of yourself as an artist and it takes guts to put your art out into the world. It is always a wonderful feeling to be included in a show and an even bigger honor to be chosen as a winner, but I want you to know that I have been on both sides of this equation. Being rejected is hard! It can knock you down and make you question yourself as an artist. I have had every emotion possible during my artist journey and I want to encourage you to put brush to paper and keep painting and sharing your artistic vision.

Judging a show is subjective and each judge brings his or her life experiences and knowledge to the table. In choosing this show, I was looking for pieces with strong compositions and a graphic quality that drew me into the painting. The second criteria that I was looking for was careful consideration to the colors in the compositions and how they worked together. I also looked for technical merit: did the artist achieve the desired effect and handle the water media well? The paintings that I chose for the awards were paintings that met the above criteria and that I was drawn to. I spent a long time with your creations, really taking in your artistic vision, thank you for sharing them with me. It is an honor to select this show and the awards.

– Carrie Waller, 2020 FWS Online Show Judge