Max Mallie's Blog: Pastel Pick of the Week | IAPS 28th Juried Exhibition

Congratulations to all of the talented pastel artists whose paintings were exhibited this month in New York City as part of the International Association of Pastel Societies‘ 28th IAPS Juried Exhibition. The show opened at the Salmagundi Club on June 6 to much fanfare and remains open through today.

IAPS leaders, Susan Weber (executive director) and Liz Haywood Sullivan (president) in front of the Salmagundi Club.

As one of the three jurors of selection—along with co-horts, Richard McKinley and Christine Ivers—I can tell you that it was extremely tough, but gratifying work to choose 140 works from an impressive pool of nearly 1,000 entries. Jimmy Wright, president of the Pastel Society of America (PSA), as awards juror, had even tougher work to do. The recipients he selected for honors were celebrated at a reception and awards ceremony last Thursday, June 9, and included:

Prix de Pastel — Elaine Despins for Elise (see below)
Gold — Teresa Saia for Aspen Forest
Silver — Daggi Wallace for There Is A Crack In Everything, That’s How The Light Gets In
Bronze — Anna Wainright for Frozen (see below). Click here to see more work by the artist in this gallery from the February 2016 issue of Pastel Journal.
Founder’s Award — Brian Bailey for Deep
Maggie Price Award — Deborah Quinn-Munson for Track 2
Four Honorable Mentions were given to Gail Piazza for Charles; Cristine Kossow for Button, Button, Who’s Got The Button?; Ray Hassard for Early Morning, New Year’s Day (see below); and Bob Russin for Summer Snag.

“I’m honored to be a part of the awards judging of this great cross section of contemporary soft pastels being made by artists across the world,” Wright said.

A view from the reception for the 28th IAPS Juried Exhibition in New York City.

IAPS sponsored additional events associated with the exhibition, including live demonstrations with PSA Master Pastelists and Hall of Fame honorees Richard McKinley on Friday, June 10, and Rae Smith on Sunday, June 12. McKinley also led a gallery walk-through on Saturday, June 11.

IAPS President Liz Haywood Sullivan had a beaming report on the exhibition: “Standing in the middle of the gallery I feel I am surrounded by the best of pastel,” she said. “The range of expression, subjects and techniques is inspiring. The best part is that, standing there, I am struck by how well they represent the pastel medium, and how much this show is going to do to advance the medium.”