Young Harris College

As you may or may not know I was invited to return to my old alma mater, Young Harris College, to serve as Juror for this years 2011 Juried Student Art Exhibition.

Young Harris College is located in the most scenic area of the North Georgia Mountains. It is almost at the North Carolina line and is surrounded by Lake Chatuge on one side and Brasstown Bald on the other side. It currently has approximately 850 students. When I attended it had 150 students. It is where I began my life as an artist in 1970. I bought my first sketchbook there. It's where I learned how to draw.It's where I learned how to see and to speak up and to sit and listen. It's where I became independent. It's where I began to be less insecure because I knew I had finally found something I loved doing. Art. It's where I first fell in love and where I found a group of kindred souls who also loved art. My tribe that was composed of artist, musicians and theatre majors. It's literally where I grew up. It's where I got my first cash drawing award and over the past 40 years I've continued to return to YHC to be a part of it's continuing growth. I've donated artwork to different alumni events and lectured to students about art and design. It's also been a place where I could just go and sit on campus and hear the echo of my own footsteps that are a part of it's history. Don't get me wrong I love my life at GSU with each of you. One campus is where I began and this campus will be where I end. Both campus' are very different in atmosphere and aesthetics but it is remarkably similar in the talent of the art students. Great art and design has no campus.

That small little Methodist college nestled in the Appalachian Mountains is where I shed all my high school stigmas and started the voyage to who I am today. I hold it dear to my heart. We all have those Polaroid moments, an epiphany, when we know why we were put here. YHC was the place where I began my life long trek as an artist. I learned the respect for my chosen career there and had one of the best teachers anyone could ever have, Ezra Sellers. It was his belief in me as an artist that gave me the encouragement to continue. A lifetime of following what I love.

I just wanted to share with you my experience with being a juror and tell you that picking out art for an exhibition is more difficult than you think. You want to encourage those just starting out in art (freshman and sophomores) while also including students work that might be potentially be a powerhouse one day. It's about seeing the potential in the work. It will be the same for you when you apply to the graphic design program in a few short weeks...and for those of you moving on into other areas of art as well. Once you've learned that you can visually express yourself there is no stopping any of you from becoming successful at what you choose to do. Call it blind faith or naive but I always just trusted that I would remain an artist. It's the one thing no one can take away from me.

As juror for the YHC Student Exhibition I chose "Best of Show," second place, third place and 5 Honorable Mentions. The final show included close to 50 various art pieces. Last night was the opening and it was great fun for me to see the students arrive to the gallery to receive their awards and to see whose work was actually selected. The students didn't know if their work selected until they got to the opening.
www.yhc.edu




Best in Show
"Like a Pinball Machine"
Jacob Rhodes


Second Place
"Shot of Love"
Jill Tuttle



Third Place
"Dreams Unfulfilled"
Kyle Honeycutt



Selected Drawings







My first Art Instructor, Ezra Sellers.