The Portrait Society of America recently concluded their annual The Art of the Portrait Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. I was fortunate to be able to attend and accept the Certificate of Excellence for my pastel self portrait Some Days. 

From the Portrait Society of America:

We received 2,276 entries and were encouraged by the good work being submitted from around the world.  Don’t let anyone tell you that Portraiture and Figurative Art is not alive and well!

Our goal in creating our annual exhibition is to display some of the finest portrait and figurative work being created today and to inspire and energize artists from all over the world.  The jurors used the following established criteria when reviewing each image over a 5-day period:

•       masterful skill in the chosen media
•       originality and uniqueness in the concept and design
•       aesthetic sophistication and 
•       cultural significance

The panel of three judges diligently reviewed each entry and found many works that fit these criteria.  They also thoughtfully worked to find a balance showing a variety of styles, techniques and aesthetics.  In addition, they looked for Empathy: sensitivity toward their subjects; Transcendence: ability to describe, in subtle ways, more than might initially meet the eye; and Vision: unique point of view in the concept and design.

Whether the work was a head and shoulders, mixed media, traditional oil, impressionist, charcoal, watercolor or experimental the judges applied the same criterial to each work. It was a difficult process to narrow down such a large and diverse group of 2,276 works to 101.  After eight rounds of evaluation, they selected 21 finalists to bring their work to the conference for on-site judging, 30 certificates of excellence for special recognition and group of 50 works that had distinction.

We are pleased to tell you that your artwork entitled Some Days, 19.5x19.5", pastel was one of the 30 artworks that was judged as outstanding and awarded a Certificate of Excellence.