Talented local and provincial artists are in the spotlight in Newmarket as the annual juried art show kicks off this week.
The gallery features 45 pieces by 44 artists at the Old Town Hall, ranging from paintings to sculptures and more. The free gallery show opens today, April 16, and continues at the Old Town Hall until April 27, with the opening reception on Thursday, April 18 at 7 p.m.
The show is organized by Dave Kempton and Peggy Stevens to spotlight artistic talent in the area.
“To take the local talent and put it into the provincial context is kind of a big deal. We like doing that,” Kempton said. “But it’s also community building, and that’s important to us.”
The Newmarket Juried Art Show, which kicked off for the first time in 2019, invites artists throughout southern Ontario to make submissions, which are then scored by a professional jury before the best pieces are featured in a gallery and considered for about $1,000 in prizes. This year’s event had 184 pieces submitted by 100 artists before being narrowed down.
Stevens said they tried to encourage more variety in terms of the type of art, such as fibre, though that did not yield as much as they would have liked to see.
“We’ll continue to put out the call. We’ll continue trying to encourage lots of different types of art,” she said.
The show also featured a virtual gallery after its live run, which Stevens said artists enjoy for a chance to boost engagement on their work and websites.
The show is set to continue for years to come, with the Old Town Hall booked for the next three years for the show in April.
Kempton said they want to work out a succession plan for organizing the show, but are still running it for now.
The work is worth seeing, he said.
“It’s fabulous art, and it’s right here, and it’s free,” Kempton said.
The reception is open and will run at the Old Town Hall April 18 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. The gallery is accessible during Old Town Hall opening hours, which run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday.
You can find information at the newmarketjuriedartshow.ca.
