TASIMJAE 2018 Recap

Annual show highlights members’ best

TASIMJAE, The Art Studio, Inc. Annual Member Jurored Art Exhibition, drew 85 entries from 55 different artists, with 50 works by 30 artists making it onto the walls for exhibition, which opened April 7.

“It was very difficult to make selections for this exhibition as well as select works to receive awards,” juror Christopher Troutman, assistant professor of art at Lamar University, said. “The initial round of selection was based on what I interpreted as works I thought would make the strongest presentation in the gallery. Further rounds of selection, as well as distributing awards, were largely based on personal taste, influenced by my preference and experience, which would result in a completely different exhibition by another juror. Because there were so many strong works, it would not have been odd for an entirely different group of artwork to be exhibited and awarded prizes.”

First place was awarded to Lisa Reinauer’s painting “Vortex.” This is Reinauer’s third time to win the top prize at  TASIMJAE, and she will have a solo show at TASI in May 2019.

Second place went to Kenneth Baskin’s ceramic “Artifact Series: Coupling.” Third place went to Benjamin Murphy’s painting, “Gold Harbor: No. 3,” and Mark Nesmith earned honorable mention for “Planet Tan.”

“Lisa Reinauer’s painting ‘Vortex,’ Kenneth Baskin’s ‘Artifact Series: Coupling’ and Benjamin Murphy’s ‘Gold Harbor No. 3’ stood out to me because I admire their precise use of materials, and resulting content, and because I perceived an unexpected quality in them, from my point of view,” Troutman said. “I was curious about what inspired those works, and I was curious about the process by which they were made, though I might not want to experience that process firsthand. Other works I found thought provoking or playful, like works by Bryan Castino and Mark Nesmith, respectively, yet prizes could equally go to many other works in the exhibition.

“It was difficult to make selections. I think there could have been fewer pieces in the show to give more open wall space, but it was hard to edit things out. Overall, I think the work in the show and work submitted was strong. It’s encouraging to know there are a lot of good artists interested in showing in Beaumont. I believe the artwork in this show represents breadth of concept and technique and demonstrates the kind of talent attracted by the Art Studio and Beaumont.”

The annual show is held in May every year, with entries due at the end of April.

For more information, visit www.artstudio.org, or become a member.

Andy Coughlan, ISSUE editor

This slideshow requires JavaScript.