[UPDATE: Awards Announced] Eastern West Virginia Exhibit

Best_In_Show_FlyEyes_LauraRobertson

Merit_Award_SunflowersInBlueVase_HeatherHendry

Honorable_Mention_WarHeronIII_TraceyDonnelyFranklin

Honorable_Mention_Untitled_CarinaElhordoy

Honorable_Mention_JeMarcheDansLeFleurs_TomNebel

Honorable_Mention_OutOfMyElement_OmarWilliams

(Click on any image to see a larger version.)

The Berkeley Arts Council announced the award winners for their 8th Annual Eastern West Virginia Juried Exhibit on display at the Berkeley Art Works. A virtual “reception” was held to recognize the participants and award winners. Congratulations to Laura Robertson from Kearneysville for her fabric piece, “Fly Eyes”, which was selected for Best of Show. Heather Hendry from Bunker Hill received the Merit Award for her pastel drawing “Sunflowers in Blue Vase”. Honorable mentions were given to Carina Elhordory, Martinsburg, for her acrylic painting “Untitled”; Tracey Donnelly Franklin, Shepherdstown, for her assemblage “War Heron III”; Omar Williams, Kearneysville, for his digital photograph “Out of My Element”; and Tom Nebel, Shepherdstown, for his oil painting “Je Marche Dans Les Fleurs.”

This year, 58 works were submitted primarily from Berkeley, Jefferson and Morgan counties, from which the juror Mr. Evan Boggess of Shepherd University selected 24 works in drawing, painting, photography, fibers, mixed media, assemblage and sculpture. He commented that there were a lot of excellent, technically proficient works from which to select, representing very interesting subject matter. His aim was to select works that demonstrated longevity and that kept the viewer thinking about them long after seeing them. The Berkeley Arts Council thanks Mr. Boggess and all the artists who submitted work for consideration in this show. This annual juried exhibit is open to artists who reside in one of the eight counties that comprise the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia: Berkeley, Jefferson, Morgan, Hampshire, Hardy, Grant, Mineral, and Pendleton.

The exhibit is on display until October 10, 2020 at the Berkeley Art Works, 116 North Queen Street, Martinsburg, WV and is open Thursdays through Saturdays, 11:00am to 3:00pm. For more information about the Berkeley Arts Council and the Berkeley Art Works, visit us on the Web at https://berkeleyartswv.org and our Facebook page.

Juror’s Statement

As a juror and fellow artist, I am always trying to articulate the unique, intangible, and persistent qualities of elevated works of art.  What is it about a particular painting, sculpture, photograph, video, print, or installation that remains in our thoughts seconds, minutes, days, months, years after seeing it?  Artwork that exhibits elevated technical skills, subject matter, and formal command are certainly deserving of recognition, but these individual aspects on their own are relatively easy to rank.  Instead, I am drawn to pieces that manage to combine these aspects in surprising ways to create new, lasting visual experiences.   –  Evan Boggess

Congratulations to all of the accepted artists. Email notifications and instructions for delivery of artwork will be sent within shortly.

(Click here to see the full list of accepted artists:

Accepted Artists: