2019 S.C. Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition and Exhibition winners
Fine craft artists and artisans from across South Carolina were invited to participate in the 18th Annual South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition, the state’s longest running juried fine craft competition and exhibition.
Organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, the show was presented May 1-5 as a component of the 2019 North Charleston Arts Fest.
Following an extensive pre-jury process, 53 applicants were asked to participate and 105 entries were submitted in the categories of clay, fiber, metal, glass, wood, and 3D mixed media. Cash awards totaling $6,500 were made at the sole discretion of the juror, Jim Arendt, associate professor of visual arts and gallery director at Coastal Carolina University.
“The diverse works on display represent a broad set of styles and themes, but share the common element of being among the best examples of a particular material or discipline. I was excited to be able to see challenging content and exceptional craft throughout the gallery. Even more gratifying is how many artists are working to push traditional models of craft and beauty by exploring difficult techniques and non-traditional materials. Together, these works encompass the finest impulses of artists and craftspeople in command of their disciplines,” Arendt said.
After awarding ribbons, Arendt also selected pieces from the show to assemble a South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Traveling Exhibition, which will be available to tour the state through the S.C. State Museum’s 2019/2020 Traveling Exhibitions Program. The program gives galleries, museums, and art centers across South Carolina the opportunity to request the exhibit to tour their facilities, thus providing additional exposure for the selected artists.
In addition to awards given by the juror, three pieces were selected for City of North Charleston Purchase Awards. These selections will be added to the City of North Charleston’s permanent Public Art Collection, which is on display within North Charleston City Hall throughout most of the year.
Congratulations to the winners of the 2019 SC Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition:
Best of Show
Kim Keats, Visceral Vessel, mixed media (Okatie)
Outstanding Merit
- Lynn Goldberg, America the Beautiful, fiber (Summerville)
- Robb Helmkamp, Wailing Box, wood (North Charleston)
City of North Charleston Purchase Awards
- Lynn Goldberg, America the Beautiful, fiber (Summerville)
- Dale Fort, Wadmalaw Native, wood (Wadmalaw Island)
- Rachel Weiss, Inca Royalty Necklace, mixed media (Charleston)
Honorable Mention
- Tanya Craig, Oblong Platter, glass (North Charleston)
- Flavia Lovatelli, Cocooned, mixed media, paper (Columbia)
- Erin Ryan, Turn of the Screw, metal (Conway)
- Dale Fort, Wadmalaw Native, wood (Wadmalaw Island)
- Jocelyn Chateauvert, Alight, paper (Charleston)
- Margaret Weinberg, Snowy Trio, clay (Charleston)
- Connie Lippert, Undulating Parallelogram, fiber (Seneca)
- Camela Guevara, Shaker Lids, fiber/mixed media (Charleston)
- Justin Guy, Clay Menagerie, clay (Edgefield)
- Tabitha Ott, In Time, mixed media (Cayce)
- Annie Rhodes Lee, Cementing Our Common Ground, clay (Folly Beach)
- Fred Prudhomme, Day & Night, clay (North Charleston)
S.C. Palmetto Hands Traveling Exhibition Selections
- Vernon Bowen, Surface Tension, mixed media (Columbia)
- Kim Keats, Triskele Totem, mixed media (Okatie)
- Jacqueline Anderson, Chapter 12, mixed media (North Charleston)
- Fred Prudhomme, Day & Night, clay (North Charleston)
- Mary Nicholson, Slice of Life Plate, clay (Johns Island)
- Tanya Craig, Oblong Platter, glass (North Charleston)
- Toni Smith, Guidance, metal (Surfside Beach)
- Kathy Oda, Here Comes the Sun, glass, Lady’s Island)
- Robb Helmkamp, Wailing Box, wood (North Charleston)
- Erin Ryan, Turn of the Screw, metal (Conway)
- Nancy Warren, Oil and Water Harmonics, fiber (Mount Pleasant)
- Margaret Weinberg, Snowy Trio, clay (Charleston)
- Arianne King Comer, Norman’s Vision, fiber (North Charleston)
- Camela Guevara, Shaker Lids, fiber/mixed media (Charleston)
- Lynn Goldberg, America the Beautiful, fiber (Summerville)
- Dale Fort, Wadmalaw Native, wood (Wadmalaw Island)
For more information about the South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition and other exhibition opportunities, contact the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department at 843.740.5854, email culturalarts@northcharleston.org, or visit NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com. Organizations interested in hosting the traveling exhibition should contact the South Carolina State Museum Traveling Exhibits Program at 803.737.4159 or tep@scmuseum.org.