A fantabulous night was enjoyed by nearly 200 folks last Thursday at Artspace 111. The occasion was our Second Annual Visionary Awards ceremony, the presentation of three $500 cash awards given to three outstanding up-and-coming local artists chosen by an esteemed committee of professionals and other knowledgeable folks. The night also included an acoustic performance by Telegraph Canyon and Brenna Manzare (Eh, Man-zar-ay! Cosa dici?!), great noshes from Reata Restaurant, and booze from Rahr & Sons Brewing Company, Diageo, and Cowtown Winery.
Among the attendees was last year’s inaugural class of Visionaries: painter Michelle Brandley, filmmaker Andrew Disney, and multimedia artist Micah Yarborough. This year’s recipients –– multimedia artist Tim Harding, filmmaker David Lowery, and painter Devon Nowlin –– were also in the house, of course, were very gracious in their acceptance speeches.
Every year, part of the event also includes a popular vote for a label to appear on every bottle of Rahr Visionary Brew, brewed in honor of our awards and unveiled on the subsequent Fall Gallery Night. The competition was stiff this year –– some of the designs were outstanding. But the winner was Brandon Huether’s cartoonish rendering of a cowboy behind binoculars on a boat surrounded by deep blue sea and floating wooden kegs. As winner, Huether will also participate in the brewing process. Congratulations to him, and “good job” to all of the submitters –– we received nearly 35 submissions from nearly two dozen artists. A look at the six finalists’ work is on the way later today.
We’d also like to thank all of the other sponsors who made our Second Annual Visionary Awards a rousing success, especially Artspace 111 and the Art Institute of Fort Worth. Thanks to Mindy Strand for the photos. (Also: A digital camera inside Artspace 111 went missing. Please return, no questions asked, to 3311 Hamilton Ave., Fort Worth, 76102.)
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