It was an honor to have been the juror of such a beautiful exhibition. It was a difficult task selecting the paintings for an award!

First Place: “Stephanie, The Lady of Steam”, 24×36, Oil, by Lee Alban. The amount of incredible detail is stunning to me. After I enjoyed looking at the technicality of the work I appreciated the subject matter. It is special to see a young women represented in a role usually represented by a man. The bright yellow gloves with smudges of grease, and her shoulders creates a subtle diagonal composition with her head in the middle. Her braided hair catches my eye, it is so soft compared with the hard lines of the engine. The cool colors around her head enhance her as the focal point.

Second Place: “Witness”, 24×30, Acrylic, by Tom Heflin. I was captivated by the perspective. At first I thought it’s a picture on a wall, but quickly realized that it is a view through a boat window. How clever! I was also captivated by the attention to detail, I can feel the rough texture of the wood. Beautiful use of complimentary colors.

Third Place: “Brothers”, 24×36, Oil, by Cathy Weiss. First I was struck by the diagonal composition, then the sweet moment these two brothers are having. The elephant on the right is making eye contact which is off center making it interesting. I have painted paintings of rhinos and elephants and I know how difficult their skin is to represent. I commend your ability to capture their subtle color changes and wrinkles.

Thank you to Sarah van der Helm for her knowledge and time judging the 2023 NOAPS Spring Online International Exhibition!

Be sure to check next week’s blog post with more insights on the award winners from Sarah van der Helm.

To view the 2023 Spring Online International Exhibition go to www.noaps.org/2023-spring-online