PHOTO: ArtPop Founder Wendy Hickey (left) and Olivia Lunger, winner of the 2017 ArtPop High School Competition.
Popular ArtPop Artist Billboard Competition Returns for 4th Year
2018 Competition Open to New Jersey Residents for First Time; High School Winner to Receive $1,000 Scholarship Offer to Kutztown University Art Program
BETHLEHEM, PA—ArtPop, the dynamic billboard competition that showcases the works of area artists on local billboards, is pleased to announce that it is expanding to New Jersey for 2018. In addition, the winner of the ArtPop High School Competition, open to Pennsylvania students in 9th-12th grades, will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship to one of the art programs at Kutztown University.
A partnership between Adams Outdoor Advertising, the ArtPop Street Gallery, ArtsQuest and the region’s arts community, ArtPop is a public art program designed to highlight local artists and the important roles they play in the community by featuring their work on area billboards. Launched in fall 2014, the program features the work of seven area artists, including one high school student, on an Adams billboard for an entire year. The program is open to artists living or working in Berks, Bucks, Lehigh, Montgomery and Northampton counties.
“ArtPop continues to highlight the great artistic talent we have in our region,” says Adams Outdoor Advertising General Manager Tony Cioffi. “We are honored to have Kutztown University back again as a partner to provide a scholarship opportunity to the high school winner and thankful to ArtsQuest and its Banana Factory for their continued support and involvement with the program.
“Adams Outdoor Advertising is excited to continue this program and I’m particularly proud to see that this year’s judging panel is again filled with some of the finest creative minds including Olaf Starorypinski, a past ArtPop winner. We wish all the participants the very best of luck and look forward to seeing the new winners on the road in early 2018.”
For ArtPop’s fourth year, Adams and ArtsQuest are opening the competition to residents of Warren County, N.J., with one winner to be featured prominently on an Adams billboard in Warren County for all of 2018. The winner of the High School competition, open to students in Berks, Bucks, Lehigh, Montgomery and Northampton counties, will also have his or her work featured on an Adams billboard for the entire year. Plus, the Kutztown University Foundation will present the high school winner with a $1,000 scholarship to be applied to one of the university’s art programs or majors. The ArtPop artists will also be showcased in an exhibition at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem in 2018.
“As a center for academic excellence in the arts in the region, Kutztown University is proud to partner with ArtsQuest and Adams Outdoor Advertising to support the ArtPop artist billboard competition,” says Kutztown University president Dr. Kenneth S. Hawkinson. “We are excited to reward a talented young artist with a scholarship to further his or her skills at Kutztown University.”
All ArtPop 2018 winners, with the exception of the People’s Choice Winner, will be selected by the ArtPop jurying panel in December. From Dec. 7-13, the public will be able to vote online at www.bananafactory.org/artpop for its favorite work for the People’s Choice Winner. All winners will then be announced Dec. 19.
“We at ArtPop national are thrilled to have our program in the Lehigh Valley region for the fourth consecutive year,” says ArtPop founder Wendy Hickey. “The ArtPop Lehigh Valley program is one we could not be more proud of.
“ArtPop is now in 14 cities across the country and supporting 205 artists to date. Our partners in Pennsylvania continue to provide a robust and unique offering to the artists and the Lehigh Valley community. The Lehigh Valley chapter of ArtPop is executed in an incredible way – we can’t thank our partners enough for all they do to support local art.”
Jurors for this year’s ArtPop competition are:
– Stacie Brennan, Sr. Director of Visual Arts, ArtsQuest
– Danielle Smith, Graphic Designer, Adams Outdoor Advertising
– Wendy Hickey, Executive Director, ArtPop Street Gallery
– William Childs, Director of Marketing & Communications, Trifecta Technologies
– Barbara Fraust, Public Arts Chair, Bethlehem Fine Arts Commission
– Ann Marie Hayes, Hawkinson, First Lady of Kutztown University
– David Mickenberg, President and CEO of Allentown Art Museum
– Olaf Starorypinski, Professional Photographer and 2015 ArtPop Winner
Artists interested in participating in the ArtPop competition should submit a digital image of their two-dimensional or three-dimensional work online at www.bananafactory.org/artpop. Pennsylvania artists must submit their works as a 24.333-inch by 6.333-inch jpeg at 300 dpi; Warren County, N.J., artists must submit their works as an 11.33-inch by 5.22-inch jpeg at 300 dpi. Artists must also provide their name, complete address, email address, title and mediums of the original work of art and a one-paragraph biography.
“ArtsQuest is proud to be a partner for the ArtPop competition and to connect artists with this incredible opportunity to showcase their work and talent,” says ArtsQuest Sr. Director of Visual Arts Stacie Brennan. “ArtPop is a unique way to celebrate the diverse artistic and cultural community in the region and to share the work of emerging artists with a broad audience. It places art in unique and unexpected locations to not only beautify our communities, but also to make it accessible and available to the public.”
Competition dates and deadlines are as follows:
– Dec. 6 – Deadline for artists to submit work
– Dec. 7-13 – Public vote for People’s Choice Winner
– Dec. 19 – All ArtPop 2017 winners announced
For complete information on ArtPop and the official Artwork Submission Specifications Sheet, visit www.bananafactory.org/artpop or like/follow ArtPop on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
Information and image provided to TVL by:
Mark Demko, ArtsQuest
http://www.artsquest.org/
