Efest Announces Winners of 2008 Eco-Art Contest

Lindow, Rio, Wolfe, Cioffi, Gormley, Velikan, and Botschner Win Awards at Efest 2008 Eco-Art Contest


With 50 exquisite entries to choose from in Efest 2008’s Eco-Art Contest, the public – and the judges – were hard pressed to select just one. This year’s entrants ranged in age from five to 84 and were comprised of amateurs and professionals, students and art groups. Assemblage artist Richard Hinger provided the Eco-Art Contest with its “Trash to Treasure” young woman that graced the entrance to the exhibit.

The three main-prize winners are: for Individual Entry, Stig Lindow and “Oscar,” a fish made from metal parts from 1950s garage doors; for Group Entry, submitted by Harmony Rio, Kelly Wolfe, and Janet Wolfe, “Reconstructing a Sleeping Venus;” and for People’s Choice, “Discover Nature – Play Outside” by nature photographer Kelly Cioffi.

Honorable mentions this year go to: Michael Gormley with “35 Hours with a Downed Citrus Canker;” K a r e n a V e - likan’s “Goddess;” and last year’s People’s Choice winner, Carla Botschner with “Faerie Dress,” created with used dryer sheets and lint. Prize sponsors this year include: Pro-Motion Notions, Stephanie Heidemann, Catherine Seress, Whole Foods, Local Coffee + Tea, LolaBlueLiving, Sunny Day Soap, Juno & Jove, Frumples, and D. G. Dart.

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MIAMI ARTIST LEBO :: coming to EFEST

Organic yet stylized, bold and louche. LEBO's art forms anew from eemingly random yet academically selected sources. LEBO's (David Lebatard) dive into art took place as a child raised in Broward County, Florida amidst a supportive Cuban-American Family.

Always allowing for improvisation to take place and have the pieces grow on their own LEBO weaves maraca-shaking muses, spontaneous be bop musicians, tranced dancers, blue bulls and gushing waves into his work. The end result is a layered pastiche of abstract and figurative forms juxtaposing movement and suspension.

Increasingly sought after, LeBatard has also worked with Gibson Guitars, Adidas, created CD covers for Phish, The Spam Allstars, and designed artwork for the Latin Grammy Awards. He has begun designing rugs, stained glass, upholstery, and a mosaic line among many other projects.

Learn more at www.lebostudios.com

Efest Trash to Treasures Eco-Art Contest POSTER

Want to participate in our Eco-Art Contest?

The Efest Trash to Treasures Eco–Art Contest is an exciting and unique opportunity to have fun while promoting environmental awareness. The Efest Eco–Art Contest is an opportunity for artists and art organizations to inspire people about the potential of recycling and conservation, said Catherine Seress, one of the Eco-Art Contest coordinators for Efest 2008. The other coordinators include Rick Hughes with AnythingArts.com and Jesse White with Sarasota Architectural Salvage.

Just visit us at Eco-Art Contest Link and download the FORM and get register NOW!

Efest Trash to Treasures Eco-Art Contest

Want to participate in our Eco-Art Contest?

The Efest Trash to Treasures Eco–Art Contest is an exciting and unique opportunity to have fun while promoting environmental awareness. The Efest Eco–Art Contest is an opportunity for artists and art organizations to inspire people about the potential of recycling and conservation, said Catherine Seress, one of the Eco-Art Contest coordinators for Efest 2008. The other coordinators include Rick Hughes with AnythingArts.com and Jesse White with Sarasota Architectural Salvage.

Just visit us at Eco-Art Contest Link and download the FORM and get register NOW!

To learn more about last year winners please read our article.

Efest Announces Winners of 2007 Eco-Art Contest

Efest 2007’s Eco-Art Contest, “Trash to Treasure,”
yielded 20 outstanding entries for judging, both by the Efest
team and by the public. The youngest entrant of the contest was only six
years old. Two local schools, Bay Haven and New
Gate, also produced some wonderful entries.

And “wonderful,” “outstanding,” “striking,”
“amazing” were all expressions used by everyone
who visited the displays. “It’s important to say
thank you to all the entrants, for their boldness in stepping
forward with their entries,” said Catherine Seress,
Efest’s Eco-Art coordinator.

Prizes were donated by Del Harley (“Change,
A Starter Kit”), Mister Landscaper, (micro-sprinkler system),
and Pro-Motion Notions of Sarasota (crystal Efest 2007 illuminated cubes).
A special thanks goes to D. A. Gordon Dart, whose “recyclable
reptile receptacles” proved so popular with visitors
that they were taken during the day.

The winner for the People’s Choice Award was
“Poo,” an ostrich crotcheted of plastic shopping
bags by Carla Botshnor. It delighted both because
of its whimsy, but also the obvious time and skill it
took to compose the piece.

The Individual Entry Winner was for “Rebirth,”
the silhouette of a pregnant woman, impregnated
with seed on clay, by Aaron Cratty. The
structure of the silhouette was created using
labels from a variety of otherwise discarded
baby products.

The Group Entry Winner was “Window into the
Past” by the Old Braden River Historical Society.
The group regularly cleans up the Braden River
and this year composed a piece – a doorway
(which had also been found) covered in various
artifacts, discarded items, empty snail shells, and
one alligator skull.

An Honorable Mention was given to Cheryl
Murphy for her whimsical crab, which especially
got the attention of the children coming into
the tent.

“All of the entries were truly wonderful, and we
appreciate the time, thought, and creativity that
was required for each entry,” said John Poundstone,
Deputy Art Coordinator for Efest.

Already several of the artists were talking about
next year’s entries, with others who did not enter
this year saying they would for 2008. Of course,
the most important aspect is that everyone
had fun!




Photos by PM Exposure and Holli Bonito

Please let us know what you think about this article
by writing your comments in our Green Blog.