By Danielle Smith
Staff Writer
The 43rd annual Manhattan Beach Hometown Fair was held on October 3rd through 4th as a gathering for all ages supporting local businesses and nonprofit organizations. The Amateur Art Exhibit is a showcase in which South Bay residents enter their art in a contest and share their talents with the community.
Contestants spanning from preschoolers to seniors submitted artwork exhibited by age group. The intricate detail included in the art, especially the quilting, portrayed the immense amount of effort that was put into creating each submission. In each age group, over ten pieces of art including drawings, paintings, photographs and quilts were on display.
The Amaetur Art Exhibit is an amazing way for South Bay residents to display their best artwork in a public area. Many pedestrians wandered into the Joslyn Community Center searching for a shady place, and were surprised to view the hidden talent that many contestants explore as a hobby.
A wide range of material was used in each category as some pieces were crafted using watercolor or acrylic paints, colored pencils, ink or even crayons. The diversity in color use and canvas size also added to the dynamicity of the exhibit, generating an interest for the viewer.
The three main categories for each age group were photography, quilting, and fine art. Fine art was defined as drawings, paintings, collages, prints, or sketches. The different assortment of materials that artists were allowed to use in their piece permitted almost any expression of art to be submitted to the contest.
In the photography by children category, Katie Kabealo won first place for her photograph of an artichoke named “Art-it-Choke”. The use of perspective and unusual lighting paired with the creative title, instead of a normal picture of an artichoke, accurately represented the incredible talent that was on display.
Alison Gerber, a costume designer for Mira Costa High School plays, won first place for her small quilt. She used leftover materials from pirate costumes from the Peter Pan play. Her use of recycled materials illustrated how the artists in the Amatuer Art Exhibit were inspired by their environment.
The first place ribbon was awarded to high-schooler, Bridget Sheridan. Her collection of three pieces called “Back to Basics” featured pencil drawings of extremely detailed hands. In each piece the hands were performing different tasks and the perspective of the piece was changed, allowing Sheridan to draw hands in various positions.
The next annual Manhattan Beach Hometown Fair will be held in October of 2016. Applications for the next Amateur Art Exhibit must be completed and submitted in September of 2016. There is a limit of three entries per applicant.
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