OCTOBER 21ST, 2019

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Last week, I attended the Gala for the Kingston Prize competition of 2019, in Gananoque, Ontario.

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After seeing pictures of each entry throughout the month of September, I was eager to finally see the portraits in person, and as expected, I noticed nuances in glazes, textures, color saturation and contrast that were toned down or lost in digital medium. The actual size of the portraits also had a strong impact on the impression each artwork left on the viewers. My friend, who generously drove me to the event, made a remark on the placement of the art in the room, and how portraits hung side by side valorized each other, while completely owning their space.

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The exhibition had a great variety of styles, techniques and subjects, each interesting in their own way, and as one other finalist said to me, “I wouldn’t want to be part of the jury and have the difficult task of choosing a winner!”

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But somehow, these professionals managed to do what we could not, and they selected a grand winner, as well as two honorable mentions : Atleigh Homma, winner of the 20,000$ Kingston Prize, and Elaine Despins and Leslie Watts, the two runner-ups. Congratulations to all of them for their incredible work!

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And also a big thank you to the organizers and volunteers for making this such a wonderful event. Everyone present was incredibly nice and cheerful, and a real pleasure to talk to.

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Finally, Gananoque is a beautiful little town with charming people, and Don from Sleepy Hollow Bed and Breakfast makes some of the best Belgian waffles I’ve eaten in my life.

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