Stetson University Students’ Artwork Shines in the Annual Juried Art Exhibit
November 12, 2019
The 30th annual Student Juried Art Exhibition kicked off officially last Friday, with students of all years having their own unique artwork displayed in the Hand Art Center.
The annual Juried Art Exhibition invites undergraduates involved in all forms of artistic expression to enter their work to be voted on by the Creative Arts Faculty members. The top works receive cash prizes, and all pieces are displayed in the Hand Art Center and will be displayed there until Dec. 6.
The thought of submitting personal works of art can seem overwhelming, but it is simple to submit to the competition. You can submit up to four pieces, or small concentrations by filling out a short form, bringing your art in, and displaying it. For Jaime Remus (’21), the process was simple: “The day before the deadline I saw that other people were applying. I went, ‘oh, I should probably do that too!’ And so I literally just went into my studio and grabbed the pieces I knew I wanted to submit, just filled out the forms, and turned them in within like an hour or so. So it was really easy.”
This was Remus’s first year applying to the Juried Art Exhibit, and although she holds a substantial portfolio of work, her process for picking pieces to submit felt instinctual for her. She knew based on a gut feeling, as well as some help from studio art professor Dan Gunderson Ph.D. “Some of the pieces I made last year and when I made them and they came out, I knew that I wanted to submit them for something,” Remus said. “It was Dan Gunderson who said, ‘You have to apply this next semester for the art thing!’ So, it was mostly just knowing my talents and knowing which [pieces] highlighted it the most.”
When Remus found out that her art had been selected, she was surprised. Although many were encouraging, she found herself falling into a little bit of self-doubt, like many artists do. “Internally my dialogue just was like, ‘Oh, I’ll submit it, whatever.’ I don’t have much faith in myself,” Remus explained. “So to actually be accepted was very validating in my skills in a very practical way.”
On display in the Hand Art Center now are all types of art including detailed paintings, pristine pottery, pencil drawings, 3-D mixed-media pieces, video clips, and even a whole wall of intricate embroidery. In the background, music and sounds of ambiance playson speakers to accompany the visual presentations by Stetson students.
In such a subjective field, it can be intimidating to put work up for show or to submit to a competition like this, but the results can be validating beyond comparison. The Juried Art Exhibit is a great way to put your own work out there and see what happens and be featured in a studio with students just like you! If you are an artist and have work you would like shown, be sure to submit to the Juried Art Exhibit next fall!
