Bay Arts Alliance proudly announces its 61st Bay Annual Competition and Exhibition opening on Friday, May 3 at the Center for the Arts in downtown Panama City. The public is invited to attend the opening reception and awards ceremony on Friday, May 3 from 5 -7 p.m. Awards will be announced at 6 p.m. that evening.
A tradition started by the Panama City Artist Association, the Bay Annual Competition & Exhibition has brought together artists and arts enthusiasts throughout Northwest Florida to showcase the region’s finest artists.
“The Bay Annual has always been a special exhibition because it helps reconnect our community’s artists,” said Jayson Kretzer, Executive Director of Bay Arts Alliance. “At the awards reception, it is so cool to see the artists sharing techniques and rooting for each other and it’s our absolute honor to showcase these fantastic artists each year.”
Over 100 pieces are submitted each year and then juried down to the finalists in the exhibition. Of those pieces, six will be chosen to receive awards by this year’s judge, Kevin Curry, Assistant Professor of Digital Foundations and Sculpture/Ceramics at Florida State University.
Artists in the Northwest Florida region are encouraged to submit their works on April 19 and 20 at the Center for the Arts. Submission details can be found by visiting the Center for the Arts in person, by phone, or online at pccenterforthearts.com/artist-opportunities.
The Center for the Arts is open Tuesday–Thursday 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. -7 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. -5 p.m.
About the Judge
Kevin Curry received his BFA in Graphic Design from the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, and after working as an Art Director in New York and Philadelphia, started his own design & Illustration business before receiving his MFA in Sculpture from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois in 2008.
Moving to Colorado in late 2009, Kevin has served as Adjunct Faculty at DU since 2010 and Regis University since early 2012. In that time, has been awarded public art commissions by the City of Denver (to be located on Tennyson and 41st) and RTD for Denver’s new transportation hub based at the Historic Union Station as well as solo exhibitions at Colorado State University and Rule Gallery in Denver.
Over the past four years, Kevin has been an Artist-in-Residence at Lawndale Art Center in Houston, TX, Art342 in Fort Collins, Colorado, Platteforum in Denver, Colorado and is currently a resident artist at RedLine in Denver, Colorado. 2013 will see Kevin at residencies at Kimmel-Harding in Nebraska and on the south rim of the Grand Canyon as part of the National Parks Artist-in-Residence program.
