Judge: Dr. Dori Griffin
Over years of working together with student designers, I’ve held many conversations about the personal and cultural associations tied to hair and to how hair is represented visually in the world. Our hair can be an important signal of our connections—to our race, culture, religion, gender, class, or social and personal identity. As such, it’s important to see ourselves and our communities represented in the visual culture that surrounds us. The visual messages we send—through our own choices about our hair, through the art we release into the world—deserve the kind of reception and reflection made possible by this show.
(1) Best in Show goes to Woman Life Freedom by Nazita Fazlkhah, who deploys hair as a powerful and iconic symbol of personal and shared liberation for Iranian women.
(2) The Award of Excellence goes to Leaving Home by Carly Shooster, a Jewish-American comics artist whose work tells a visual story about mothers, daughters, and the dynamic relationship between hiding and revealing oneself.
(3) Third Place goes to Taxidermy Strands by Zoe Ze Zhou, a multimedia artist who uses her own hair as material to explore human relationship to the world and familial relationships to one another.
The five merit awards go to artists who joyfully, expansively take up physical and visual space with their representations of what hair might mean in diverse contexts. Riotous curls, intricate braids, or magnified views of single strands and follicles—how we show our hair to the world can tie us to family, culture, faith, community, and place. As a viewer of this show, I find profound joy in this multivocality of expression.
BEST IN SHOW:
Woman Life Freedom – Nazita Fazlkhah
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
Leaving Home – Carly Shooster
THIRD PLACE AWARD
Taxidermy Strands – Zoe Ze Zhou
MERIT AWARDS
Blowout – Suzanne Stone
Labor of Love – Lâle Gerger
Metal Head – Kris Ritchie
Tangled Up in Blues – Kathy Faraone
Saudade: Hermento’s Dream – Kali Geiger
June 25 - July 20, 2024
Judge: Sarah Maloney
BEST IN SHOW:
Precious Cargo in Summer - Verónica Villaseñor
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Great Egret Dream - Susan Jacobson
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Merged Histories / Centrifugal Attraction - Rick Yasko
Singing in the Moonlight - Linda Henderson
Release Your Inner Monster - Cheryl Russell
Micro World II - Sylvia McIntyre-Crook
May 28 - June 22, 2024
Judge: GFAA Members
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Conversation Tea Cart - Linda Henderson
MERIT AWARDS:
Greetings from Wonderland - Laura Margaret
Sandhill Cranes Leaving Paynes Prairie - William Baruch
Des Eaux Calmes - Melanie Pate
November 28 - December 22, 2023
Judge: Rachel Silveri
BEST IN SHOW:
The Flash of the Oriole - Candace McCaffery
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Experiments with Collage and Interference with Black and White “Noise” I - Maria Leite
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
It Takes a Team - Karen Koegel
MERIT AWARDS:
Resplendence of Tulips #8 - Christine Brundige
The Building Blocks of - Johnny Coleman
Cellon Oak in Winter - Bill Ragan
Growth can be Prickly - Erica Davis-Jackson
August 23 - September 22, 2023
Judge: Carol McCusker
BEST IN SHOW:
Breaking New Ground - Dixie Biggs & Delaine Miller
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Dye-Versa-Tree - Candace McCaffery & Chris Brundige
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Mensajes de la Ayahoasca - Dawn Schultz & Alejandro Vazquez
MERIT AWARDS:
Oh Joy! or Whimsical Rhapsody - June Beverly & Ann Hughes
Decorative Tree - Ronda Richley & Suzanne Weirick
When We Were Birds - Linda Zidonick & Linda Henderson
Blah Blah - Karen Koegel & Tina Corbett
Kin - Skip Snow & Air Current & mushroom spore
July 22 - August 19, 2023
Judge: Tom Hart
BEST IN SHOW:
Self Portrait - Sylvia McIntyre-Crook
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Florida Self Portrait 2023 - Charlotte Newman
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Untitled (Quarantine Portrait) - Angela DeCarlis
MERIT AWARDS:
Nonbinary Looks Like Me and You and Everyone - Kali Geiger
Self Portrait - Alfred Phillips
June 28 - July 22, 2023
Judge: Jendi Shaza
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Eggplant Village - Amy Lindroth
Curiosities - April Burk Clark
Tall Tied Down Ginger Jar - Kate Murray
May 24 - June 24, 2023
Judge: Devin Harclerode
BEST IN SHOW:
Body Shapes: Mind and Spirit - Keiaria Williams
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
I Left My Husk Behind to Nurture New Life - Kristin Powers
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
If Only These Has Transparency - Frank Curtis
only myself when i'm with you - Charles Ely
I Have No Secrets - Caren Hackman
Lack of Transparency - Amy Lindroth
November 22 - December 22, 2022
Judge: Anthony Ackrill
BEST IN SHOW:
Mexicana Waterlily IV - Candace McCaffery
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Colette's Memories - Paul Newman
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Indirect Route - Michael Nuetzel
Pale Wrapped Jar - Kate Murray
1960 Suburban Magic - Chris Deacon
House of Memories - Sally Larson
October 25 - November 19, 2022
Judge: Jen Yu
BEST IN SHOW:
The Bacchus Buffet - Paul Newman
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Toulhouse Market Tomatoes - Sue Kelman
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
The Happy Pear and the Never-Ending Journey - Harimandir Khalsa
August 23 - October 22, 2022
Jurors: Dina Dean, Jesús Fuenmayor, Katy Lemle
BEST IN SHOW:
Mental Health v2 - Anthony Faiola
Talking Without Speaking, Amendment 2 - Margaret Jo Feldman
MERIT AWARDS:
The Universal Language of Labor - Laura DeValencia
July 26 - August 20, 2022
Judge: Stacey Breheny
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Cataloging My Darkness - Kristin Powers
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
& Recovering Brain - Shelby Blaes
Self-Image Portrait - WIlliam Mueller
Being in a Perpetual Twisted Hell - Bobbi Matheson
June 23 - July 23, 2022
Judge: Dr. Queenchiku Ngozi
BEST IN SHOW:
Big Tied-Down Ginger Jar - Kate Murray
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Self-Portrait (Oppressive Florida Sun on Blue-Collar Life - Benjamin Ingle
MERIT AWARDS:
Seventy-Seven Cents - Charlotte Newman
Balance - Abigail Victoria Waldhaver
I Tell the Old Woman - Mary Bast
ABSENCE & PRESENCE: ABSTRACT BLACK & WHITE
May 24 - June 18, 2022
Judge: Elayne Dubin
BEST IN SHOW:
Under the Trees I & II - Julie Johnson
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Secret Messages - Peter Senesac
MERIT AWARDS:
Carve Out Your Shining Moon - Michelle Nagri
Forgotten, But Not Gone - Wendy Sullivan
April 26 - May 31, 2022
Judge: Eleanore Blair
BEST IN SHOW:
We Are All Just A Little Bit Plastic Now - Skip Snow
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Transport Properties / Take N Toss - Wendy Sullivan
MERIT AWARDS:
It's About Women - Hazel Jopling
Scrapescape 1 - Stephanie Haas / Jeff Hillman
Fallen Fragments Rising - Paul Newman
The Aqua Aquatic Goddess - Linda Henderson
Let Them Have Their Mansions, We Have Our Cottage - Cesar Evans
March 22 - April 23, 2022
Judge: Patrick Grigsby
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Nightstand Guardian - Annie Thompson
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Guardian of the Forest on the Isle of Cumberland - Bob Senesac
MERIT AWARDS:
The Hat of Hades - Alexis Henderson
The Myth of Political Kindness - Paul Newman
Dragon Skin Ensemble - Patti Barker
February 22 - March 19, 2022
Judge: Paula Anderson
BEST IN SHOW:
Vacationing in Tatooine - Skip Snow
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
She Swirled Around Me Then... - Michael Angelo Gagliardi
MERIT AWARDS:
Full Circle - Sylvia Montesinos
Kubrick's Enigma - Michael Levy
Sunlit Salt Marsh - Susan Jacobson
Moon Over Matryoshki - April Burk Clark
January 28 - February 19, 2022
Judge: Valerie Aslakson-Jennings
BEST IN SHOW:
Eliza Jane & Jerry Matt, 1936: The Family Tree - Linda Henderson
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Little House in the Hills - April Clark
Lady Bird, Lady Bird - Kim Hurt
November 23 - December 22, 2021
Judge: Normen Jensen
BEST IN SHOW:
Color Changes & Many Leaves - Joyce Dewsbury
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Digital Depths - Stephanie Haas
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Jewel Beetle (Bupestris sp.) - Candace McCaffery
Abandoned Nursery - Michael Zietz
True Love (A Human Conscious Experience on the Space-Time Continuum) - Kelly Meehan
August 24 - September 18, 2021
Judge: Meghan Moe Beitiks
BEST IN SHOW:
Walking with Satellites: The Animated Series - Skip Snow
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Tiny Dancer in My Head - Michael Angelo Gagliardi
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Paul Tumbling - Alfred Phillips
MERIT AWARDS:
Feeding the Congregation - Johnny Coleman
Brown Pelican in the Air - John Harvey
Desert Magdalene - Paul Newman
Gingerbreadmanlessness - Sarah McIntosh
July 27 - August 21, 2021
Judge: Dan Stepp
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
All Hair is Good Hair - Keana Poindexter
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Unfinished Business - Davis McGlathery
Heart of the Woodland - Nancy Betty
Old Woman and the Truck Side - Michael Angelo Gagliardi
Tree Roots-Canyonland National Park - Greg McDermott
June 22 - July 24, 2021
Judge: Emma Jensen
BEST IN SHOW:
The Contemplation You Get at the End of a Long Journey - Michael Angelo Gagliardi
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Objective Data, fig. 1 - Stephanie Birch
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Death of a Giant - Linda Krause
April 27 - May 22, 2021
Judge: Matthew Knight
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Wanderlust II (Florence) - Maria Leite
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Save the Fragile Ones - Stephanie Haas
MERIT AWARDS:
Blurred Lines of Desire #2 - Annie Morien
Then They Kissed - Michael Angelo Gagliardi
The Gold That Never Gets Old - Ali Graves
Not Your Trophy/Not Your Fetish - Keana Poindexter
February 23 - March 20, 2021
Judge: Claire Orenduff-Bartos
BEST IN SHOW:
The Death of Marat - Foad Seyed Mohammadi
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
The Day the Music Died - Gwendolyn Chrzanowski
MERIT AWARDS:
Pollinator Series 1 - Nancy Betty
Dead River Valley - Sarah McIntosh
Rising Roses - Tom Hundersmarck
Organized Chaos - Karen Reed-Denson
January 26 - February 20, 2021
Judge: Carol McCusker
BEST IN SHOW:
The Lines & The Fans - Kerry Wilson
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
You'll Fit Right In - Kim Hurt
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Sunset of the Mind - Giuliano De Portu
SpaceX Dragon Demo - Halea Jo Downing
Swamp Faces-Visions - Bill Paine
There's Always a Feather - Julia Sullivan
November 17, 2020 - January 2, 2021
Judge: Jesús Fuenmayor
BEST IN SHOW:
Short Pencil Knows the End is Near - Dallas Sigmon
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Pecking Order on South Main Street - Mary Ruth
MERIT AWARDS:
The Green Man - Rebekah Merlino
October 30 - December 30, 2020
Judge: Katie Baines
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
We Will Find Our Way - Celia Burger
Labyrinth - Foad Seyed Mohammadi
September 22 - November 22, 2020
Judge: Porchia Moore
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Don’t Know Where We’re Going - Jacob Lehmann
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Porto Neighborhood - Frederic Ross
August 25 - October 25, 2020
Members Voting - People's Choice
BEST IN SHOW:
Done Reach - Vicki Damon Johnson
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Working/Not Working - Alfred Phillips
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Watermelon Harvest - Craig Walters
MERIT AWARDS:
Squeezing Out Ideas - Alfred Phillips
El Ribereño (Amazon) - Stephanie Haas
Past Peaceful Protests - Karen Koegel
Nude Self Portrait - Judy Cain
July 28 - September 28, 2020
Judge: Erin Curry
BEST IN SHOW:
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Mathematical Axiom in Translucent State - Sylvia McIntyre-Crook
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Simocephalus Profile - Jenna Pochy
MERIT AWARDS:
Bittersweet Distractions - Michael Mills
June 23 - August 23, 2020
Judge: Hector Puig
BEST IN SHOW:
Space Explorer III - Sylvia McIntyre-Crook
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Shadow Point Beauties - Robin Lee Makowski
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
MERIT AWARDS:
Perceptual Breach - Michael Nuetzel
The Boundaries of Adaptation - Kristin Powers
Reflected Nature - Isabel Acosta
Fern Hammock Springs - Michelle Nagri
ATTENDING TO WONDER - Biennial National Juried Exhibition
May 26 - July 26, 2020
Jurors: Amory Abott, Lauren Hill, Logan Marconi
BEST IN SHOW:
Rice Creek Town Homes 2 - Shannon Estlund
Unfocused Territory 1 - Jayne Struble
MERIT AWARDS:
Prayer for Coherence - Kim Matthews
Sweet/Darkness - Georgiana Nehl
May 2 - July 2, 2020
Judge: Richard Heipp
BEST IN SHOW:
Mulberry Drift - Candace McCaffery
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Worldly Peacock - Frank Curtis
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Bright Farm Pond - Alfred Phillips
MERIT AWARDS:
Angels Observe the Little Blue Planet - Catherine Goldman
Manholes - Michael Frommer
Quiet Passage - Alfred Phillips
Love the Hell Out of the World - John Seitz
Sweetwater Wetlands Edge, Clouds, Studio Woods - Harold Barrand
April 2 - June 2, 2020
Member Voting - People's Choice
BEST IN SHOW:
Secrets of the Garden - Nancy K. Betty
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Cold Weather Coming - Anda Chance
THIRD PLACE AWARD:
Connections - Candace McCaffery
MERIT AWARDS:
Flight Party - Debra Lindberg
Path to Somewhere - Peter Senesac
Into the Garden of Dreamers - Michelle Nagri
Remembrance - Gretchen Brooks
Untended Garden - Alfred Phillips