The Columbus Metropolitan Library, Friends of the Columbus Metropolitan Library and the Ohio Arts Council’s Online Visual Artist Registry Present A is for Art, B is for Books, C is for Celebration
by Kathy Burgan

The Columbus Metropolitan Library and the Ohio Arts Council have once again partnered to bring arts opportunities to artists and the public by presenting an exhibition in conjunction with the Library’s Centennial Celebration—A is for Art, B is for Books, C is for Celebration. Work selected for the exhibition include words or text.

The exhibition will be on view at The Columbus Metropolitan Main Library on the second floor of the Carnegie wing from April 28 through July 15. Visit Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Main Library Centenial Celebration featuring renowned author Sue Grafton. The library is located at 96 S. Grant Ave., and is open Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. – 9 p.m., Friday - Saturday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday 1 – 5 p.m.

An award of $750 will be presented to the Jurors' Choice Leslie Shiels for her work Moth of Christ. Jurors also chose three works for honorable mention: Bernice Koff's Conversation, Rumana Hawa's Glade of Reflection, and Brooke Hunter-Lombardi's September 23. The Awards Reception will be held on April 28 from 4-5:30 p.m. The jurors choice award is provided by Friends of the Library.

Jurors reviewed 198 pieces by 48 artists. The exhibition presents 26 pieces representing 23 Ohio artists from the Ohio Online Visual Artist Registry as chosen by jurors Chuck Cody, Victoria Losinski and Katharine Moore.

Artists featured in the exhibition include: John Matuszak, Bexley; Carey McDougall, Canton; Diane Eyerman, Chillicothe; Leslie Shiels, Carol Tyler, Diana Duncan Holmes and Timothy Riordan, Cincinnati; Ann Corley Silverman, Brooke Hunter-Lombardi, Rachel James, Bernice Koff, Elizabeth Murphy, Jeff Ostrowski, Stephanie Rond, Debbie Rosenfeld, Amy Spiders Petsch and Kevin Will, Columbus; Jason Cannon, Dennison; Dan Gerdeman and Donna Varner, Grove City; Rumana Hawa, Kent; Diane Stemper, Oxford; and Ruth Smilan, Westerville.

Juror biographies:
Chuck Cody is the Manager of the Humanities, Fine Arts, & Recreation and Fiction sections of the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Main Library, where he has worked since 1988. He has a Master of Science degree in Library Science from the University of Kentucky and a B.A. in psychology from Moorhead State University in Minnesota.

Victoria Losinski is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin with a degree in Art Education and a Masters Degree in Visual Arts from Carthage College. Losinski has been an art teacher of grades K-12 for the past 18 years. She currently teaches visual art to middle school students in New Albany.

Katharine Moore is the executive director of the Jefferson Center for Learning and the Arts. A native of Washington, D.C., Moore worked in international programming before coming to Columbus a decade ago. She produced events in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Russia, Chile and Argentina. She has developed a number of arts events in German Village to include German Village Art Crawl, Marketplatz and Village Scene.

The Ohio Online Visual Artist Registry is free, online, cross-referenced, and useful for collectors, curators or anyone who needs to find artists and artwork. Visit www.ohioonlinearts.org for more information.

The First Annual Online Visual Artist Registry Juried Art Show at the Columbus Metropolitan Library Main Library was presented in late summer and fall of 2006. In 1998 the two organizations partnered to create the Ohio Online Visual Artist Registry, a database that showcases the work of more than 700 artists from Ohio and across the country.

For more information contact Jami Goldstein at the Ohio Arts Council, 727 E. Main Street, Columbus OH 43205-1796, 614/466-2613 or e-mail jami.goldstein@oac.state.oh.us.

The Columbus Metropolitan Library mission is to promote reading and guide learning in the pursuit of information, knowledge and wisdom.

The Friends of the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s mission is to promote library involvement in the life of the community and community involvement in the life of the library, by developing financial and human resources and sponsoring activities and programs.

The Ohio Arts Council is a state agency that funds and supports quality arts experiences to strengthen Ohio communities culturally, educationally and economically.

Click here to view the postcard for —A is for Art, B is for Books, C is for Celebration.

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