Competition response delights Masterworks

Seventy-two artists have submitted entries for the new Charman Prize in everything from oils to pastels, acrylics, watercolours, charcoal, mixed media, photography, print making and sculpture.

From these the Masterworks Foundation has selected one piece from each artist to be juried by overseas judges Molly Epard of the Hollis Taggart Gallery in New York and Carter Foster, curator of drawing at the Whitney Museum; as well as Bermuda judges Dr. Charles Zuill and businessman and Bermuda resident John Charman.

The artists are competing for the $10,000 Charman Prize which will be given to the overall winner. In addition, Mr. Charman is donating $300 vouchers for art supplies to the winner in each of the five competition categories, as well as $100 to each entrant.

The winners will be announced on March 2 during a special reception in the Rick Faries Gallery as part of the gala opening celebrations of the Masterworks Foundation's new Museum of Bermuda Art in the Botanical Gardens.

All artwork short-listed for competition will be available for sale in the gallery from February 29 to March 20.

Curator Elise Outerbridge said the Foundation was very pleased with the artists' response to the competition, given the short entry deadline. Not only had its "old, old friends" managed to enter despite busy lives and commitments, but also a wealth of previously unknotn talent had emerged.

"While the cross section of people who responded were from all walks of life and every section of the community, they all had one thing in common: a very high degree of excellence," she said.

The Charman Prize is a new, annual competition open to all resident Bermudian artists, as well as non-Bermudian artists who have been resident on the Island for at least six months prior to entry deadline.

Watercolour workshop at Dockyard Arts Centre

Award-winning Canadian artist and instructor Marilyn Timms will be in Bermuda from March 27-30 to conduct a four-day watercolour workshop under the auspices of the Bermuda Arts Centre at Dockyard.

Each morning Ms Timms will demonstrate her skills at en plein air watercolour painting, explaining each step of the process as she paints. Artists will have ample opportunity to paint and, with the small class size, each participant will have plenty of direct help from this expert instructor. A review of the group's efforts, with constructive critique, will wrap up each day.

The total cost of the workshop for four days is $375 per person. Classes will run from 10.15 a.m. to 3.45 p.m. with a 30-minute lunch break.

Participants will be required to bring their own lunch/refreshments, and will receive a suggested supply list in advance via e-mail from Ms Timms.

Just 16 places are available, for which a $100 deposit is required to secure a reservation, with the balance payable by Monday, March 24.

Artists are urged to book early as places are expected to fill quickly.

Anyone wishing to participate should contact BACD administrator/curator Kym Bailey at 234-2809, e-mail artcentre@ibl.bm or fax 234-0540 between 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, or Mrs. Mary Morris at BACD on Saturdays and Sundays.

Once all 16 places are filled, a reserve list will be created. In the event that an artist drops out and there is a reserve to take that person's place, the artist's deposit will be refunded.

Otherwise, the deposit is non-refundable.

Primarily self-taught, Ms Timms is a highly regarded and respected artist who has won many awards for her art. She is a full signature member of the Federation of Canadian Artists (SFCA), and a very popular art instructor throughout North America.

For further information about her Bermuda workshop contact Ms Bailey at BACD.

For further information on Ms Timms and images visit website http://members.shaw.ca/mtimms/opening.html

Stevenson whale photos première at Kaleidoscope

The public can now see, for the first time, 30 exceptional underwater photographs taken by well-known Bermudian author, photographer and conservationist Andrew Stevenson of North Atlantic humpback whales during their migration past Bermuda.

The evocative images have been taken from digital still frames of high-definition video footage shot by Mr. Stevenson during the first year of his three-year project to make a documentary about the migrating mammals, dubbed 'The Humpback Whale Film Project'.

The underwater images were all taken 15 miles offshore on Challenger Banks using highly specialised camera equipment to produce the highly detailed, intimate close-ups.

The culmination of more than 300 hours spent in and on the water, each of these distinctive 13 by 23-inch mounted photographs provides a unique perspective on the 45-foot, 40-ton whales.

While the exhibition can now be seen by the public, due to Mr. Stevenson's absene abroad, the official opening reception will take place on February 28. The exhibition will continue through March 3.

For further information on the location of the gallery and opening hours see today's Bermuda Calendar on page 37.

n Additional underwater footage of humpback whales can be seen on Mr. Stevenson's website: www.youtube.com/awstevenson