Greater Napanee’s ‘Colours from the Heart’ on display at Window Art Gallery
“Art is an expression from the soul of the artist. And often it shows us colours from the heart,” reads the promotional material for Colours From The Heart, The Greater Napanee and Area Arts Association (GNAAA) fifth annual juried art show and exhibition.
Winning results were presented at a reception on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022, and now the show is available to view in an exhibition at Window Art Gallery (WAG) in downtown Kingston, which runs until Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022.
Tim Nimigan took first prize with his painting, Work in Progress. Elain Taranu, on behalf of Exit Realty in Napanee, presented the cash prize and certificate.
Second prize was presented on behalf of the Napanee Branch of the Retired Women Teachers of Ontario (RWTO) by their President, Beryl Jacka, to Angela Smith-Pollard for her painting, Morning Walk.
Rise & Shine by Marion Morgan was awarded third prize, as introduced by Tim Nimigan on behalf of the Arts & Culture Advisory Committee of Greater Napanee, and presented by Diane Phaneuf.
GNAAA is a group of around 50 artists who reside in Greater Napanee and the surrounding area. Last year, they had their first opportunity for an exhibition in Kingston at the Window Art Gallery, and this year’s show builds on that success. Diane Phaneuf, one of the exhibition coordinators, said that as much as Napanee is an art-friendly town, there simply isn’t currently a gallery space sufficient for this type of juried art show.
Second prize winner, Angela Smith-Pollard, only recently joined the GNAAA membership, and expressed her excitement over her win in a Facebook post reading, “What an amazing experience to… have my work ‘Morning Walk’ Juried for the first time ever. I want to thank GNAAA and Diane Phaneuf for their hard work, and volunteers for organizing the space set up at WAG. A big thank you to all the entries and a huge shout out to the RWTO Napanee Branch for their generosity. It is very humbling to be amongst so many talented artists.”
Honourable mentions were given to Lisa Ray Koenig for Xanadu, Elaine Taranu for Au Pays d’Oc IV, and Ruby Urlocker for Princess of Hearts #1.
“The styles of awarded paintings are all so very different,” pointed out Phaneuf, “The honourable mentions are interesting because one is a first-timer — not sure of her age, but around 17, I believe — one is a popular regular, Elaine Taranu, and one is an emerging artist who is really having an impact, Lisa Ray Koenig.
Phaneuf pointed out that Urlocker’s Princess of Hearts #1 sold the day of the reception to another member of GNAAA, and noted, “That was cool.”
Membership in the GNAAA is open to all visual artists (aspiring, professional, student), businesses and organizations involved in the visual arts, and individual and corporate supporters of artists. For the purpose of this organization, the term ‘artist’ is defined as someone engaged in the creation of original visual artwork in any medium (oil, acrylic, glass, wood, metal, jewellery, photography, fibres, clay, etc.). Their membership year runs from January 1 to December 31.
For more information about the exhibition or to join the membership visit the GNAAA website. Those wanting to view the 2022 exhibition can do so at Kingston’s Window Art Gallery, located at 647-A Princess Street.