61st Annual Delta Exhibition opens on May 3

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The Arkansas Arts Center’s 61st Annual Delta Exhibition presents a vision of contemporary art in the American South. Founded in 1958, the exhibition provides a unique snapshot of the Delta region.

The Delta Exhibition reflects the region’s strong traditions of craftsmanship and observation, combined with an innovative use of materials and an experimental approach to subject matter. Guest juror Kevin Cole will select the artworks to be exhibited and assign the $2500 Grand Award and two $750 Delta Awards. Additionally, a $250 Contemporaries Award will be selected by the Contemporaries, an auxiliary membership group of the Arkansas Arts Center.

The exhibition is open to all artists who live in or were born in one of the following states: Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. Art must be original, completed in the last two years, and not previously exhibited at the Arkansas Arts Center.

This year’s juror was Kevin Cole.  He is a contemporary artist best known for sculptural works, paintings, and intentional use of color. An Arkansas native, Cole’s artwork has been featured in more than 475 national and international exhibitions, including the 42nd Annual Delta Exhibition (1999) at the Arkansas Arts Center. His work can be found in notable private and public collections around the country. Among his public commissions are a fifteen-story mural commissioned by the Coca-Cola Company for the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta and a twenty-foot high by fifty-five feet long sculpture commission at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Atlanta. Cole was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame in 2018.

The artists selected to participate in the Delta this year are:

John Ahlen of Little Rock, Ark.
Joshua Asante of Little Rock, Ark.
Carrie Ballinger Porter of Little Rock, Ark.
Loren Bartnicke of Auburn, N.Y.
Kenneth Baskin of Lake Charles, La.
Zachary Blair of Little Rock, Ark.
Kim Brecklein of Harrison, Ark.
Cynthia Buob of Columbus, Miss.
Debra Callahan of Jonesboro, Ark.
Olevia “Libby” Caston of Russellville, Ark.
Julie Darling of Memphis, Tenn.
Karen DeJarnette of Little Rock, Ark.
Virmarie DePoyster of North Little Rock, Ark.
Dylan Eakin of Seattle, Wash.
Ivy-Jade Edwards of Memphis, Tenn.
Scinthya Edwards of Helena, Ark.
DebiLynn Fendley of Arkadelphia, Ark.
Bryan Frazier of Little Rock, Ark.
Janet Goodyear of Eureka Springs, Ark.
John Green of Little Rock, Ark.
Alice Guffey Miller of Monticello, Ark.
Heather Christine Guenard of Cabot, Ark.
Pam-ela Harrelson of Dallas, Texas
Carol Hart of Fayetteville, Ark.
Amber Imrie of Sunnyvale, Calif.
Sherry Leedy of Kansas City, Mo.
Mark Lewis of Tulsa, Okla.
Jason McCann of Maumelle, Ark.
Keith Melton of North Little Rock, Ark.
Daniella Napolitano of Little Rock, Ark.
Dale Newkirk of Hammond, La.
Kevin O’Brien of Ocean Springs, Miss.
Mark Payne of Pine Bluff, Ark.
Rashawn Penister of Pine Bluff, Ark.
Yelena Petroukhina of Little Rock, Ark.
Jason Rankin of Little Rock, Ark.
Zachary Roach of Memphis, Tenn.
Jay Sage of Oklahoma City, Okla.
Ray Scott of Little Rock, Ark.
Sandra Sell of Little Rock, Ark.
Hunter Stamps of Lexington, Ky.
Laura Terry of West Fork, Ark.
Holly Tilley of Little Rock, Ark.
Mabry Turner of Little Rock, Ark.
Katelyn Vaughan of Monroe, La.
Michael Warrick of Little Rock, Ark.
Laura Welshans of Little Rock, Ark.
Nancy Wilson of Little Rock, Ark.
Emily Wood of Little Rock, Ark.