36th Annual All Florida Exhibition

This annual show is the most anticipated of the year. As the name suggests, this exhibition features pieces created by artists working in a wide variety of media from all over the 65,000 square miles that make up Florida. The juried entries come together for an award-winning and exciting exhibition representing today’s contemporary Florida artists.

Awards include $1,000 cash for Best In Show, a 2nd Place gift certificate, $100 cash for 3rd place and Jurors Choice Award(s) of Alliance for the Arts membership(s).

First Place: Hilda Champion for “Into the Maze”, juror said she chose this one because of composition. “Gorgeous composition and use of color photography with the stark field of water, plus SUPER smart to print it large scale. The way that heightens the experience of the small boater vs. the huge field of water was a very smart choice. The artist was really thinking about how to make it not just another photograph but a truly composed work of art.”

Second Place: Martha de la Cruz for “Permutations of Power”, juror said the piece “has this great mix of fine art and sculptural presence, but it’s giving this great not to craft as well. Using this mix of craft/fine art, wester/otherness, high/low art is so very thoughtful. And the nod it gives to the experience of subjugated people is very impactful.

Third Place: Hernan Brito Pena for “Memories”, juror said “This was a standout figural painting. The technique is clearly there but the choice to then break down the texture into lines and dots is very effective. This work seems to play with viewer experience more than most, I can see it forcing viewers to move around the space and interact in ways that other pieces do not.”

Honorable Mention: Kathy Summer for “Wuhan Virus” juror said, “I genuinely don’t know if this choice to call the work Wuhan (Rather than covid) is a political statement because they’re far right or if they’re mocking the far right. I like that I can’t tell. The overall composition really reflects the fog of confusion we’ve all been living in. But when you come in close, the mark making is gorgeous. It’s angry but it’s also really intentional. This one built layers of texture and meaning very well.”

Congratulations to the accepted artists: Misao Adachi, Hernan Brito Pena, Andy Brunhammer, Hilda Champion, Carol Coates, Joanna Coke, Nargiza Dadabaeva, Martha de la Cruz, Gabriele DiTota, Tod Drucker, Dana Enders, Kathryn Erickson, Becky Franco, Ron Garratt, Muffy Clark Gill, Arlet Gomez, Lisa Green, Mikhail Gubin, Stephen Hayford, Kristin Herzog, Sarah Hull, Linda Hunsaker, John Hutson, Carol Imes-Luscombe, Aimee Jones, Shawn Dell Joyce, Ameena Khan, Mary Kay Klein, Mary Klunk, Raymond Locke, Mär Martinez, Alexandra McCurdy, Lois McDougall, Allan Mestel, Katrina Parker, Devora Perez, Gregory Presley, Galal Ramadan, Barbara Redondo, Carol Rosenberg, Cheryl Sattler, Margaret Schnebly Hodge, Leah Schneider, Joel Shapses, Barbara Sheehan, Dale Smith, Jim Smith, Lauren Sopourn, Kathy Summer, Barbara Sykes, Khaysie Tiburcio, Addison Wolff, Peter Zell and Amanda Zirzow.

The 36th Annual All Florida Exhibition is generously sponsored by American Art Collector and International Artist.

Statement from the Juror, Dr. K.C. Williams:

I am honored to have been invited to adjudicate the 36th Annual All Florida, as this year feels like a pivotal moment for art. We are starting to emerge from the darkness of the last two years, but it seems as if we are all walking out into a world that is much more precarious than the one we left behind when we closed our doors in March 2020. The political and social currents that sweep us forward, the environment that sustains us, and even the very humanity that binds us: all are suspended in a posture of dynamic fragility. Visual art gives us tools to swim against fell currents, to make meaning from environmental vulnerability, and to approach each other from a place of humane discourse. The works chosen for this exhibition variously reflect or challenge our 2022 shared state of being.

The exhibition on display represents an extremely competitive field. The works chosen all share a high quality standard with regard to thoughtfulness in creation, craftsmanship, or handling of those fundamental elements of design such as color, line, composition, texture, etc. Some demonstrate a truth to medium that indicates a deep connection between the artist and their materials, while others portray an artist’s innovative spirit, willing to push the boundaries of a medium to expand our understanding of what’s possible.

As I was assembling this exhibition, I was struck by the visual and conceptual relationships that I saw between works of disparate medium, style, and subject matter. These relationships create a clear picture of our current, precarious world. Dialogues emerge; some works challenge one another, representing different points of view or understanding of the same social, historical, or human phenomena, while others demonstrate clear points of connection in our increasingly fractured world. Other works continue the conversation about what it means to live in such an ecologically distinct (and diverse) state as Florida, where humanity and the environment each hold the power to destroy the other. All works chosen for this show engage us, the viewers, in a dialogue about the world in which we live.

About the Juror

Dr. K.C. Williams is a visual arts professional with over 20 years of experience in the art world. As Gallery Director for the Mattie Kelly Arts Center Galleries in Niceville, Florida, she presented an annual schedule of professional fine art exhibitions, while hosting community art events, teaching college courses in art history, humanities, and art appreciation, and mentoring student artists. In that capacity, she grew a regional juried exhibition into the annual Emerald Coast National, and negotiated a rare solo exhibition of works by the late artist George Rodrigue. Prior to moving to the Panhandle, Williams was Curator for LeMoyne Arts in Tallahasee. Other notable roles include researching Nazi-era provenance in order to repatriate looted objects in the the collection of the Eskenazi Museum, and creating the first digital archive of the photographic works of William Eggleston.

Williams has published and lectured on diverse topics ranging from the Florida Highwaymen to Soviet pop art, and from WWII era propaganda art to the relationship between contemporary sequential art and Japanese kamishibai paper theatre. She holds a doctorate in education from the University of West Florida, where her dissertation addressed the function and uses of collegiate art galleries beyond the display of art; an MA in Art History from Indiana University (specializations in Modern, Medieval, and Roman Art); and a BA in Art from Rhodes College. She resides in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, with her husband, daughter, and geriatric pitbull.

36th Annual All Florida Juried Exhibition Dates:

Exhibit Dates: March 4 – 26, 2022
Opening Reception: March 4 from 5 – 7 p.m.

In the theatre lobby: Elise Sewall: Transparency and Reflection

Elise Gold Sewall seriously loves painting in oil with a clear vivid pallet.  When she goes into her studio to paint everyday, the music starts (loud) and life is very peaceful and good.
As an award winning fine jewelry designer turned oil painter, Elise has been painting since she was a child, happiest when totally immersed in a project. Primarily painting portraits and landscapes for years, recently Elise has been working on a series of abstract reflections in ordinary household objects. The effects of light, reflection, and color on familiar every day household objects such as glass and metal became inspiring. The movement of light and vivid color shown through brushstrokes and her use of paint show how she sees the world. Currently she is working on a series, “Reflection and Transparency.” Elise has shown and been recognized in juried shows internationally and at a state and local level

In the Member Gallery: Doug MacGregor

Doug MacGregor is a native of Binghamton, N.Y. and a graduate of Syracuse University.  He has lived in southwest Florida since 1988. He was the full-time editorial cartoonist for The News-Press in Fort Myers for twenty-three years tackling local, state and national issues on the editorial pages. You can still spot his work occasionally in the News-Press.

Currently, he is still enjoying his position as coordinator for the Arts in Healthcare program, which brings bring art and music to patients and families within the Lee Health System.

Doug also visits schools, libraries, art centers and civic organizations sharing his love for drawing and lecturing on creativity. He has also written and illustrated six children’s books including his series, Turtellini, The Turbo-Charged Turtle.  He also created, Rad Hair Day, and Get Creative; Turn On The Bright Side Of Your Brain.  All books are available in the Alliance gift store.

Doug is also a local musician, sings and plays harmonica with his classic rock band, the Rosada Project. You can see Doug’s work and hear his music at dougcreates.com.

Gallery hours are 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. during our weekly farmer’s market.

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