OCAF’S 26th ANNUAL
April 16th – May 28th, 2021
Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation (OCAF)
Watkinsville, GA
SouthWorks 2021 Juror’s Statement
In the initial stages of the jurying process, I sought to establish an outline for making selections. To achieve this, I asked myself several questions. What is the exhibit trying to accomplish Where is it being held and how will it be received? What are the spatial parameters that I must work with in? As the process progressed and with regards to my own personal criteria, I sought to create continuity in content, aesthetic, and an overall final narrative as well as a varied representation of media.
Inspired by some of the thematic elements present within the entries, I was able to deduce several southern storylines and visual dialogs of color, form, iconography, and ambiguity I included artists who displayed a depth of famil iarity with their medium and who demonstrated an awareness of presentation which accentuates their work.
My curatorial palette tends to be peppered with curiosity, fabled charm social relevance, temper, aptitude and profundity all qualities which can be observed in the group final selections.
To each of the entrants who contributed to and supported this exhibition your art and your voice are inspiring. I wish each of you success and fulfillment in your forthcoming, creative endeavors.
Jennifer A. Smith is the gallery director for the Arts Center of Greenwood, located in South Carolina. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Visual Arts from Lander University in 2010, ncluding an academic minor in Art History.
A native of Anderson, South Carolina, she has 11 years of curatorial experience including exhibition design, administration, creative consulting, and marketing with various nonprofits and arts organizations throughout the southeast She has also served as an in dependent juror for more than a dozen exhibitions.
In her professional history with The Arts Center of Greenwood, she has organized over 140 exhibitions from 2010 2021.
Director’s Choice: Greyson Smith
Gardens of the South
