"Area 7, High Park", a mixed-media work by Frances Patella of Toronto, won Best in Show in the fifth annual Vaughan Juried Art Exhibition.

By CAITLIN ORR

Outstanding works of art in the fifth annual Vaughan Juried Art Exhibition will be on display at the City Playhouse Theatre in Thornhill from May 31 to June 26.

“This is a really wonderful opportunity to feature local and Greater Toronto artists,” says Sharon Gaum-Kuchar, arts coordinator for the City of Vaughan.

A total of 129 works, created by both emerging and established artists from Vaughan and other GTA municipalities, were submitted by mail in April. A panel of professional artists selected 27 to be showcased in the exhibition.

Gaum-Kuchar says the event, which is the only formal exhibition organized by the city, raises the calibre of local artists by providing an opportunity to compete with Toronto artists on a level playing field.

It also contributes to Vaughan’s art integration strategy, as each year some of the winning works are added to the city’s public collection.

The strategy is still being developed, she said, but it will ultimately address how the city will purchase artwork in the future, where that artwork will be displayed and when exhibitions will take place.

“We do plan and hope to increase the number of fine art exhibitions over the next few years,” Gaum-Kuchar said.

The city is also looking into developing its own formal art gallery.

In this year’s exhibition, a mixed media representation by Toronto’s Frances Patella, called Area 7, High Park, was named Best in Show, with a cash award of $500.

Reserve Best in Show went to Ron Wild’s Rawnwild, a digital C-print using mapping imagery, with a cash award of $300.

Juror’s Awards of Merit were given to Warren Hoyano’s watercolour, Dissolve in Time, David Kempton’s photographic work, Canadian Idle, Kurt Rostek’s painting, Prairie Possibility, and Jason Salvatore’s photo, My Path.

A People’s Choice Award, based on votes cast by visitors, will be announced after the exhibition closes.

The free exhibition is open Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 1 to 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 12 noon to 6 p.m.