By Troy Moon
Pensacola State College
Vogue magazine would be fortunate to have a cover as striking and visually compelling as the mock cover created by Pensacola State College graphic design student Aubrey Dean.
Dean’s three digital paintings that were then transformed into a mock cover and advertisements for Vogue won “Best in Show” at the 2022 PSC Art Student Honors Exhibition Award Ceremony.
The ceremony was held on April 14 in the Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Arts. Twenty students won awards, all coming with some sort of cash, product prize or scholarship. Dean won $300 for Best in Show, which is voted on by PSC Visual Arts Department faculty.
“I’ve been drawing since I could pick up a pencil,’’ said Dean, who will receive an Associate of Science in Graphic Design degree in May. “Even though I’ve been drawing for years, I’ve learned so much here at PSC. The instructors have been amazing and helpful and are very supportive. They’ve really helped me grow.”
Dean also is a student-intern graphic designer in the PSC Marketing Department.
The PSC Art Student Honors Exhibition runs through Friday, April 22, and showcases 96 artworks in a variety of media, including ceramics, drawing, painting, digital design, photography and sculpture.
“I’m very impressed with the variety of mediums and fields of study represented in the exhibition,” said Jason Pinckard, PSC Gallery Director. “The students have developed really strong technical skills and it’s evident throughout all the work. Every department is hitting the mark. You see the ambition and quality of the professors through the creativity of the students.”
Most, like Dean, have a desire to become professional working artists. That’s why they’re art majors. Some of the students represented in the exhibition will go into other fields after College, yet still have an internal artistic drive.
Hanna Matthews is a psychology student, but she won a “Best in Show – Honorable Mention” award – and $100 – for her Magnolia Platter Set Reduction-Fired Stoneware.
“Even though I’m a psychology student, I love art and take art classes as electives,’’ Mathews said. “I’ve always done art, but never played with ceramics until PSC. Every art class I take, I learn so much.”
Pinckard said the Art Student Honors Exhibition is a great opportunity for students in the show.
“They get to see their work in a gallery for the first time,’’ he said. “That does so much for their confidence and will encourage them to keep at it and continue working hard.”
There is no charge for admission to the Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Arts. It is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday. For more information, call 850-484-2550.
2022 Student Exhibition Award Winners
Best in Show ($300)
Aubrey Dean
Vogue Magazine
Digital painting
Portfolio with Mark Hopkins
Best in Show Honorable Mention ($100)
Troy Davis
A Perspective World
Pen on paper
2-D Design with Jimmy Rhea
Best in Show Honorable Mention ($100)
Hanna Mathews
Magnolia Platter Set
Reduction-fired stoneware
Ceramics II with Micah Cain
Best in Show Honorable Mention ($100)
Lily Meadows
The Pink Pony
Black conte on pink paper
Drawing II with Paula Work
Artel Prize ($25 Gift Voucher)
Allison Hannah
Self Portrait
Graphite on Paper
Artel Prize ($25 Gift Voucher)
Natalee Stuart
Still Life
Charcoal on Paper
People’s Choice Award ($100)
Micala Mathews
Unspoken Reality
Calagaz Photo Award – 3rd ($50 printing package)
Erika Akins
Not All Heroes Wear Capes, They Have Stitched-On Name Tags
Silver gelatin print
Photography I with Kristen Regan
Calagaz Photo Award – 2nd ($100 printing package)
Rosalyn Abella-Hurt
Untitled
Lumen, silver gelatin print
Photography II with Mark Francis
Calagaz Photo Award – 1st ($150 printing package)
Jennifer Hendrix
The Great Escape
Solarization silver gelatin print
Photography II with Chris White
Paul D. Lyon Jr. Memorial Award ($125)
Tara Campbell
Untitled
Wood
Sculpture I with Jimmy Rhea
Paul D. Lyon Jr. Memorial Award ($125)
Rebecca Thomaston
Surrounded by Mind
Archival ink jet print
Digital Photography II with Mark Francis
Tony Sam Faculty Choice Award ($100)
Heather Hinkle
Life and Death as a Cycle
Intaglio print
Printmaking I with Paula Work
Tony Sam Faculty Choice Award ($150)
Braden Makris
Blink-182
Digital using Procreate
Portfolio with Mark Hopkins
Bob and Pat Regan Award ($250)
Jace Champlin
Two Bottles
Reduction-fired stoneware
Ceramics with Micah Cain
Bob and Pat Regan Award ($275)
Chasity Brooks
Family Roots – Son Like Father
Digital
Portfolio with Mark Hopkins
Jaco’s Bayfront Photography Award ($500)
Ralitsa Mihaylova
Nowhere but Here
Silver Gelatin Print
Photography II with Mark Francis
Jaco’s Bayfront Photography Award ($500)
Kelsi Adams
At Home with You
Silver gelatin print
Large Format Photography with Mark Francis
1st place winner: Academic Excellence Scholarship – $3,600
Megan Grace Morris, Tate High School
Each year high school students apply for this scholarship
The applicants must be current high school seniors who will enroll in a graphic design, photography or associate in art degree at Pensacola State College.
They must have a minimum 3.0 GPA in academic coursework.
They are required to submit a digital portfolio of 10 to 15 pieces of artworks for the faculty to judge.
Anna Award ($1,000)
Brandon White
Associate in Science in Graphics Technology Degree
The Anna Award was established by the Switzer families to honor the memory of Anna Lamar Switzer, mother and grandmother of the Switzer and Reilly families who provided the transformational funds to renovate and expand the Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Arts. The Anna Award is given as a special recognition to the most outstanding associate degree-seeking student in the Visual Arts Department as selected by the faculty. The recipient of the $1,000 award must be graduating during the spring or the summer term.