Nearly 100 student art pieces decorated the Great Hall of the Student Union Thursday night when the UNC Art Club (UAA) held its first student art competition since 2008.
Open to any medium of visual art, the competition attracted work from a variety of student artists and a number of non-art majors.
The event showcased an array of work, ranging from digital art to paintings to sculptures.
Stephen Schallen, the competition’s only digital artist, entered a pixel art project. Pixel art is niche genre within the word of digital art, in which each pixel is placed by hand. Because no painting tools are used, the artist possesses a fine degree of control, Schallen said.
“A lot of people aren’t even aware of the genre,” Schallen said. “In entering the contest I was hoping it would give people more of an idea that it’s out there.”
The competition’s open entrance format provided for a diverse exhibition, but the large range of artistic genres also presented difficulties to the judges.
Chris Musina, a graduate student in the art department and one of five judges for the competition, noted the difficulty of judging such a range of art.
“I first wanted to see visual appeal,” Musina said. “Then a solid concept behind the work, and intention of materials to connect concept and visual.”
In choosing the competition’s winner the judges each selected five favorite pieces and compared their choices.
Out of nearly 100 works, the judges all selected Ben Wainmann’s “Exquisite Corpse-Anxious Tools” as a favorite.
“There’s just something there,” Musina said.
Wainmann completed “Exquisite Corpse-Anxious Tools” for a class last semester, he said.
The assignment entailed using one noun and one adjective as a theme for a work. Wainmann chose to use stamps, printing nearly 3000 images on a sheet of paper.
“I created a pixilated image that is clear from far away but blurred from up close,” Wainmann said. “I really like art that demonstrates the tenacity of artistic processes—using the work to show the amount of time put into every piece.”
Thursday’s competition was the first since the UAA broke apart in 2008.
“The club lost leadership and funding,” said Richie Transou, current president of the UAA. “We had trouble finding people to lead. I guess an art club can seem less pressing than a community service club.”
The club eventually reformed in Fall of 2009 after filling needed leadership positions.
The club holds open studio sessions which aim to cultivate both group and independent projects.
In many ways, Thursday’s event was more of a celebration than a competition, Musina said.
“To some extent quality goes across mediums—to some extent it becomes impossible to compare. But that is part of the spirit of a contest like this; it’s fun so ultimately you don’t have to worry too much about the competition itself.”
Wainmann’s wining work will be displayed in the Student Union along with Kimberly Li’s “Untitled” and Kaitlin Knapp’s “Perfect,” the second prize and public choice works, respectively.
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