Winners of the 2017 Art of Conservation contest, sponsored by the Vineyard Conservation Society (VCS), were recently announced. The contest provides an opportunity to connect students to local environmental issues, and gives the VCS a chance to gauge students’ insights, revealed in their resulting body of artwork. This year’s competition theme was “Discovery.” Artists were invited to “seek out what they haven’t noticed or experienced before on Martha’s Vineyard and to share what they find through their work,” according to a press release from the VCS.
First prizes went to Grace Kenney for a sculpture titled “Attire,” comprised of a castoff tire overlaid with recycled fibers found on the Vineyard, and to David Sweitzer for a two-piece untitled sculpture crafted from origami-style folded paper.
Other prizes went to photographs by Pandora Bassett, Cameron Moore, Kayla Oliver, Lexus Pate, Olivia Schroeder, and Emma Searle. The photographs ranged from black and white portraits of trees and a scene of abandoned cars to a structured composition of small hard-edged stones with close-up images of weeds. According to the VCS, judges were asked to base their decisions on adherence to the theme of the competition, originality, creativity, professionalism, and overall impression.
The public is invited to a reception, exhibit, and awards ceremony at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center on Saturday, May 27, at 3 pm, where the students will be honored. The Film Center will show the documentary “A Plastic Ocean” following the ceremony, and the winning artwork will be on exhibit in the Film Center lobby for two weeks.
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