View CLC Student Art Competition online
For the first time, a collection of impressive creations in the College of Lake County's 39th Annual Student Art Competition is now available online.
Due to COVID-19, the student artwork is displayed in a virtual gallery since social distancing and stay at home orders prevent the community from gathering in the Robert T. Wright Community Gallery of Art on campus.
The competition is a juried exhibit featuring paintings, drawings, computer graphics, photography, ceramics, jewelry, digital media and sculpture. Students were awarded $1,900 in cash prizes, including one $500 scholarship from the Lake County Art League.
The winner, Douglas McDowell, created a ceramic work titled "Sunflower Yellow Planter #19." A retired plastics engineer and Beach Park resident, McDowell has taken CLC art courses for continuing education.
"It's wonderful to receive recognition," he said, adding that his inspiration for the work came after seeing a fellow student create a planter.
"There are many good art students at CLC, and that includes a lot of retirees who come back each semester to develop their own niche."
Another student, Ivan Almazo, won a $500 Phoebe Boyd scholarship for his oil painting titled "Hope." Other prizes include a $100 ceramic award, four $100 merit awards, four $50 honorable mentions and four $50 Emerging Artist awards.
The juror for the show is Leisa Corbett, co-director of the Dandelion Gallery in Waukegan.
In 2018 and 2019, she won an Award of Excellence for her painting from the Chicago Alliance of Visual Artists. She also received a 2018 Award of Excellence at CLC's Recent Works exhibit.
Corbett, who has exhibited her work in commercial and university galleries and juried exhibitions in Europe and the United States, holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
The Robert T. Wright Community Gallery of Art is committed to displaying the works of Illinois artists and increasing the visibility of nationally known artists in Lake County.
Although the physical gallery is currently closed due to COVID-19, the public is welcome to view this year's entries online at www.clcillinois.edu/student-art-competition.
For more information about the College of Lake County, call (847) 543-2243 or visit www.clcillinois.edu.