Initially I viewed each piece in literally 2-3 seconds! So what I learned for myself was: a piece needs to make a big impact right away!
Then I went back and viewed the whole gallery again another 2 times and from there I started whittling down to the ones that really stood out. I ended up picking 35 initial pieces as possibilities. Then I narrowed that down to 28 then 20, which is when it got VERY difficult. I had to really start being nit picky as heck about each piece to narrow it down further to just 10 drawings that I felt were worthy of an award. But let me say this, I could have easily given any of those 20 pieces an award because they were all very strong in skill and design, but in the end I had to ask myself if I was moved emotionally by it. If I wasn't then unfortunately I had to let them go no matter how much I liked them...trust me that wasn't easy!
Another lesson I learned-the pieces had to go beyond craftsmanship (altho that is EXTREMELY important)...I truly needed to be impacted by the piece, touching me in some way to make me want to come back and view it multiple times or even think about it well after I viewed it, which the top 10 pieces absolutely did.
So what ultimately caught my eye when judging was, emotional impact, strong composition/design, drawing skills, lighting, originality/creativity, a unique subject, or an ordinary subject showed in a different way. All the pieces I ultimately picked had the most combination of these fundamentals.
In the beginning I could easily eliminate some pieces that were blurry, turned sideways, or not in the full frame. The others I passed by had multiple issues for me, such as no focal point or my eye went everywhere (as an artist you need to guide your viewers eye), cluttered backgrounds, or the background color was so strong it over powered the main subject, lines of buildings or windows where the perspective was off, the design was not strong enough or not interesting enough, not edited...could have cropped in to make it more dynamic, or if it's something I've seen a million times on Instagram. What I learned from this is to always ask myself: how can I make it unique so it stands out from all the other artists who entered. What makes it interesting or unique...what made me want to draw it in the first place.
I have to say at one time or another I have struggled with all the things I mentioned above when I find an image I want to work with. Over the years I focused too much on my drawing skills, sometimes to the detriment of other things that are just as important if not more so. But I am always learning!
If I'm going to spend a month or two drawing a piece I want to set myself up for success before I even put pencil to paper by working on my cropping, composition and editing. Sometime, literally for years before I begin a piece. For sure some are more successful than others...but I am always learning and pushing myself to do better with each piece. And perhaps one day I will be where I want to be with my art...until then I just keep showing up and doing the work.
One last thought...from time to time my art has been rejected from top shows or I've gotten in to a prestigious show but not won an award. I always allow myself to feel disappointed and sad for awhile, but actually rejection notices (more than wins) fuel my huge desire to do better. I don't know why this angst gives me drive but it does. So I hope any artist feeling down about not winning an award in this show has the desire to keep going and doing their best work. Like I said in the beginning it's just my opinion and what caught my eye and touched my heart. It's no offense to any artist's work...many of which were absolutely fantastic.
I want to wish all my best to each and every artist in this show that entered...it takes courage, vulnerability and guts to enter a show...going up against other artists to win a place in the show or an award. Not every artist is up for that kind of scrutiny of their work. But I can truly say from my own perspective, it has made me grow by leaps and bounds as an artist and person, by putting myself out there and taking a chance.
