James Elkins

Indiana University East is accepting art entries September 28-October 3 for the 37th annual Whitewater Valley Art Competition (WVAC). The competition will begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 10, in Whitewater Hall. Prior to the judging, there will be a juror presentation at 11 a.m. in Vivian Auditorium.

The top ten entries will receive monetary awards that will triple the amount given last year. IU East will award $5,000 in merit awards including $1,000 for Best of Show. Artists with accepted entries will be notified by Wednesday, October 12.

This year’s competition will be juried by James Elkins, E.C. Chadbourne Professor in the Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism, School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Elkins grew up in Ithaca, New York. He completed his B.A. in English and Art History, graduate degrees in painting and art history, and a Ph.D. in Art History, from the University of Chicago. Since then he has been teaching at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

His writing focuses on the history and theory of images in art, science, and nature. Some of his books are exclusively on fine art (What Painting Is, Why Are Our Pictures Puzzles?). Others include scientific and non-art images, writing systems, and archaeology (The Domain of Images, On Pictures and the Words That Fail Them), and some are about natural history (How to Use Your Eyes). His most recent books are What Photography Is, written against Roland Barthes’s Camera Lucida, and Art Critiques: A Guide.

The WVAC receives 300 to 400 pieces of art for the competition each year. Previous entries have included works from high schools and universities, art organizations and centers and independent artists. The competition is open to all artists, age 17 and older, who live within a 300-mile radius of Richmond, Ind.

Entries for the competition may include drawings, paintings, mixed media, photography, printmaking, computer graphics, relief sculpture and sculpture. Works are not judged by category. Entries must be hand-delivered to the enclosed gallery located in Whitewater Hall, between noon and 5 p.m., Monday, September 28, through Saturday, October 3. Entries will not be accepted after October 3.

Each artist may submit up to three entries. Fees are $25 for one entry, $40 for two entries, and $50 for three entries.

Accepted entries will be on exhibit in The Gallery and Meijer Artway from October 29 to December 4. The artist opening reception and awards presentation will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, October 29, in Whitewater Hall.

Entry forms, information on eligibility and a calendar are available at iue.edu/gallery or by calling Ed Thornburg, art director, at IU East at (765) 973-8605 or email edthornb@iue.edu.