Octagon Center for the Arts

2021 Octagonal: The All Media Show
2021-03-06 - 2021-04-10 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Octagonal: The All-Media Show is the annual, juried all-media exhibition at the Octagon Center for the Arts in Ames, Iowa. Originally titled the Clay and Paper Show, the exhibit opened in 1968 to provide an opportunity to the central Iowa arts community. Over the past 53 years, the exhibit morphed over the decades to become the Clay, Fiber, Paper, Glass, Metal, Wood Exhibit that has featured hundreds of artists from dozens of states. The newest version of the exhibit, Octagonal: The All-Media Show, launched in 2018 taking a note from the past while moving forward to continue to provide an exciting opportunity for artists across Iowa, the Midwest, and the nation. This exhibit features a regionally-recognized juror each year, attracts artists from across the United States, and provides significant cash awards.

Awards
Winifred V. Brown Best of Show award: $1000
Media award for each category: $100

2021 Juror: Jenie Gao

Jenie Gao is a full-time artist, creative director, and entrepreneur. She specializes in large-scale projects including murals, public installations, curatorial works, and creative direction. She is an interdisciplinary leader with a professional background in the arts industry, public education, and lean manufacturing, and an advocate for equity for artists and creative labor. As a first generation American, she is a spokesperson for the arts as a path to cultural relevance for a diverse citizenry.

Jenie is an arts ambassador who has served as the Vice President of Wisconsin Visual Artists, Chair of the Biennial at Museum of Wisconsin Art, and Public Art Committee member for Madison Arts Commission. She is a founding member of Arts + Literature Laboratory and Dane Arts Mural Arts, where she has served as a fundraiser and systems builder for the financial longevity of these nonprofits. Jenie is a TEDx Madison speaker and outspoken advocate for the value of the arts in our ecosystems. She is a former artist-in-residence at Proyecto’ace in Buenos Aires, Argentina; Museo de Arte Moderno in Castro, Chile; Iowa Lakeside Laboratory, Madison Public Library, and Artist Campaign School with Fractured Atlas. As a curator, she has produced exhibits at companies like Promega Corporation and AC Hotel
Marriott as a way to build bridges between artists and businesses.

Jenie currently runs a 1,700 square foot production studio and has hosted 20 interns since 2018. Through her interdisciplinary work, Jenie has become a visionary leader who knows how to bring together industries, education systems, and cultural representation to create a more equitable ecosystem for everyone. https://jenie.org/

The competition was fierce this year. Jenie Gao chose 41 pieces from a total of 349 submissions by 134 artists. This means that 12% of the overall submissions were chosen for this show. The artwork is selected through a blind process (the juror sees the artwork without the artist’s name or location). Award winners will be selected by the juror just before the show opens. Awards are partly funded through an endowment from the Brown Family. We would also like to thank our Octagonal sponsor: Haila Architecture, Structure, and Planning.

2021 Award Winners

Priscilla Sage Fiber Award: “Iridescent Turkey Sticker on the Outside” by Lily Martina Lee. Sponsored by Haila Architecture, Structure, and Planning.

Janet Harris Squires Clay Award: “Ignorant” by Ingrid Lilligren. Sponsored by Haila Architecture, Structure, and Planning.

Martha Benson Metal Media Award: “Quilted Grid” by Jeremy Diamond. Sponsored by Haila Architecture, Structure, and Planning.

Veronika Ruedenberg Mixed Media Award: “The Transition of Venus” by Jamie Malone. Sponsored by Haila Architecture, Structure, and Planning.

Paper Media Award: “Frozen Floral Waste #1” by Jody Boyer. Funded by the Brown Family Endowment Fund.

Wood Media Award: “Tortuous” by Tom Whalley. Funded by the Brown Family Endowment Fund.

Painting Media Award: “Self Portrait as an Invasive Species” by Caylin Jayde. Funded by the Brown Family Endowment Fund.

Emerging Artist Award: “Baptism” by Paige Holzbauer. Funded by the Brown Family Endowment Fund.

Winifred V. Brown Best of Show Award: “Stretched Thin” by Katie Walberg. Funded by the Brown Family Endowment Fund.

Please visit our YouTube channel to see the virtual reception, which includes juror comments and a panel discussion with artists (Jody Boyer, Tibi Chelcea, Cyndi O’Hern, and Josh Sorrell) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvK13pCHrqg

2021 Accepted Works

First Name
Last Name
Title

Chris
Abigt
Rock Bridge

Janet
Bergeron
Ketchikan

Jody
Boyer
Frozen Floral Waste #1

Makayla
Carlson
Testing the Waters

Makayla
Carlson
Whatever Keeps You Is All Right By Me

Nanette
Catigbe
Heart of Glass

Tiberiu
Chelcea
Randomly Accessed Memory #4

Kelly
Devitt
Outward

Jeremy
Diamond
Quilted Grid

Terry
Dooley
Little Big Creek

Maggie
Douglas
Surroundings

Jennifer
Drinkwater
Man, Superman, Gunman (March 11, 2013: Part I)

Nathan
Edwards
Horizons

Charlie
Esker
the divine feminine

Desiree
Fuller
Still Life #4

David
Garrison
Rushing Water

Cindy
Gould
Salt Flats: Great Rann of Kutch

Jill
Guffy
Small Quilt Collage II

Susan
Heggestad
Embellishments: Adorn/Repress

Paige
Holzbauer
Baptism

Randy
Hoshaw
SWITCHGRASS ON 69

Caylin
Jayde
Self Portrait as an Invasive Species

Marcia
Joffe-Bouska
RIO DE MI CORAZON (triptych)

Carole
Kunstadt
PRESSING ON No. 8

Diane
Kunzler
Turbulence

Lily Martina
Lee
Iridescent Turkey Sticker on the Outside

Lily Martina
Lee
Pot is the New Tanning

Ingrid
Lilligren
Ignorant

Jamie
Malone
The Transition of Venus

Christopher
Merchant
End Table Cabinet

Cynthia
O’Hern
(F)emanate

Chuck
Richards
A Gallery of Grotesque Self-Portraits

Anna
Segner
Bite Back

Josh
Sorrell
Viral

Jac
Tilton
Bullis Discount

Jac
Tilton
Chillin’ Below Michigan Ave.

Katie
Walberg
Stretched Thin

Gina
Westergard
With The Stars and With Me

Tom
Whalley
3-D Portholes: A Study in Black and White

Tom
Whalley
Tortuous

Alicia
Wilkinson
Setting The Oppressed Free
