Just over 100 pieces are on display at this weekend's Westman Juried Art Show, taking place at the Kenton Community Hall with the Hamiota-Midwest Art Club hosting.

The Arts West Council is celebrating 45 years of hosting the annual event as it brings together local artists with a passion for a variety of mediums to share what they've been working on over the past year.

The purpose of the Juried Art Show is to provide amateur and emerging artists a venue for professional critique and an opportunity to present their work to the general public.

The exhibition will be open to the public on Sunday, April 28th from 1:30-2:30 pm with all works on display for folks to peruse as well as vote on for the People's Choice Award.

It can be an exhilarating and yet nerve-wracking time for the artists to share their pieces with their fellow artists, their communities and the jurors! 

Visual artist, Ben Davis, has taught at Brandon University while actively being involved in community arts education. Former Director/Curator of the Buhler Gallery, Leona Herzog, will be returning as juror.

From the exhibition jurors will choose the Best of Show Award with a gift certificate for the winner.  The jurors will also select 20 pieces to participate in the 2024-2025 Travelling Art Gallery that will travel throughout the Westman Region over the next 12 months.  Over a dozen communities will showcase the 20-piece exhibition in their community halls, libraries, or galleries.  As well, ten pieces will be chosen to participate in the Northern and Rural Juried Art Show that takes place in Winnipeg each year in September.

"The ones that excel will be chosen for the shows, so there are a lot of benefits for participating because you could end up with your art traveling for the best part of a year and then shown in Winnipeg," shares Gerry Oliver, Chair of the Arts West Council. "So, it reaches a really large audience."

It's important to note all participating artist are not professionals, they simply enjoy working in the different mediums, from acrylic and oil paint to fiber art and pencil drawings, and everything in between!

Oliver says the jurors spent the past two days viewing and sharing their written comments for each participant. "So, each participant would receive 2 comments from the jurors, and they also have the opportunity at the show to talk with the jurors regarding their pieces. In my mind that's probably one of the best parts of the juried show. It gives the participants the opportunity to ask questions and get feedback on their work."

This year's theme is 'Chasing Light', and participants were invited to enter either one or both of their works into the theme category. "We have had a fairly strong number of entries into this category so I'm quite excited to see how people have interpreted 'Chasing Light'," says Oliver.

There are 2 youth categories (ages 11-13 and 14-19) and one adult category (age 20+).  Oliver's own art students from Neepawa have been participating in the annual event since 2017. They will be showcasing their work from over the past year, and some of her students have entered other categories.

The public is invited to the Westman Juried Art Show Sunday, April 28th at the Kenton Community Hall at 219 Cornwall Street, Kenton.

Please listen to more with Gerry Oliver below!

For final results of the Sunday show, and to see the Travelling Art Gallery's itinerary by checking out the Arts West Council HERE!