Quantum scientists have proven that the mere act of human observation can affect the physical properties of subatomic particles. If you separate two entwined particles by great distances, the observation of one particle affects the physical properties of the entwined partner particle. 

This is called entanglement. It has been said that beauty, and its interpretation, is in the eye of the beholder and this is certainly true of art, especially when the art in question is somewhat or totally abstract. The further away a work of art is from representation the greater the need for an observer to give it meaning. The meaning is relative to the act of observation. 

Judge: Adrienne Kochman

1st Place: Michele Silveti-Schmidt, Fleeting

2nd Place: Shelley Timm-Thompson, Sand and Water

3rd Place: Gina Robbins, Purge

Exhibition dates: This exhibition has been extend through April, 30th

Comments from Adrienne Kochman about the awarded work is below:

For all of them, the first element that struck me was the depth with which each artist was engaged with their materials, and then, how they were using the materials to create a cohesive, dynamic and I would say 'living' work. They all held my interest and encouraged me to return to them. They invited me to figure something out, a visual problem or perhaps something difficult to elucidate with words, which wasn't concluded by the works themselves. I was aware of the process the artists maintained in creating each work and also sensed that a larger process was involved, beyond these individual works. In Michelle's relief sculpture, I really appreciated her combination of materials - 'high' and 'low'; purchased and found or ready for the trash [milk gallon rims], and the aesthetic value she placed on them regardless of their origin. They all have equal weight. I also liked the intricacy and constructed space, and the way she used color to define depth at various planes receding towards its back. Shelley's painting is very well balanced - between naturalism and abstraction; in color range, painterly brushwork vs. loosely geometric shapes. It's expressive but also concerned with formalism. I found it very pleasing in a serious way. Gina's sculpture in some ways embraces those components of ceramic sculpture which are taught by educational instructors as 'should be excluded' or scraped away in order to give the sculpture a crisper, more defined shape, and on some level, prevent cracking in the kiln or an underrealized glaze. Clay is scooped out, linearity is clearer, getting that crisp edge is emphasized and one doesn't let glaze pool or thicken on the surface. This sculpture isn't about those elements but rather seems to explore what happens if those guidelines aren't followed exactly. That's what I find interesting. How far can she take it? What happens when the scale of the sculpture is enlarged?