April 2013

Carolina’s Got Art! Exhibition and Competition Held at the Elder Gallery in Charlotte, NC, Looks at Regional Art

The Elder Gallery in Charlotte, NC, will present the 3rd Carolina’s Got Art!, on view from May 3 - 30, 2013. A reception will be held on May 3, from 6-9pm, when an awards presentation will take place at 7pm as juror Lance Esplund announces the results of this two-state competition. Esplund will offer a juror’s discussion on May 4, beginning at 11am.

Larry Elder, founder of Carolina’s Got Art! asked juror Esplund, “if regional art was becoming a lost art?”.

Globalization has flattened our world. The regional variations that provide uniqueness to a state or even a nation are rapidly becoming lost. Chief among them is a lost sense of regionalism in artwork.

“Trends move faster across the country and around the world,” notes Lance Esplund, chief art critic at Bloomberg News. “I’m seeing less regionalism, less and less sense of a feel for the place and the people from the artists’ work. In some ways I think that’s kind of sad. I remember seeing a show and reviewing it in New York and then flying to Santa Fe and seeing 10 of the exact same things.”

Charlotte’s Larry Elder aims to change that. Elder launched Carolina’s Got Art!, a two-state arts competition in 2009 with the goal of supporting Carolina artists. “We want Carolina’s Got Art! to represent the diversity of artwork being created across the Carolinas. To do that, you’ve got to find artists in the large metropolitan areas as well as in small towns and communities, which is no small task.”

Now in its third year, Caroilna’s Got Art! has thus far received entries from over 130 cities and towns across North and South Carolina. “We pride ourselves in having coverage from all corners of the states,” beams Michael Orell, co-producer of the art exhibition which will be held at Elder Gallery in Charlotte’s SouthEnd arts district. “We are tracking each entry and placing a red pin on our maps to show that we are representing the artists no matter where they live within in our states. Our goal is to give everyone who considers themselves an artist an opportunity to compete.”

Elder and Orell hope to prove that Carolina-created art still retains its uniqueness. “We are encouraged by our random viewing of the current entries in that we have received sculptures constructed of twist ties, a vessel made of pine needles, and paintings of varying subject matter and techniques,” says Elder.

When asked why Esplund would undertake such a project he responded, “My interest in doing things like this is that it gives you the sense of the area, the place and the people. More professional venues do not give you this. It’s more a flavor of the place. I believe in supporting younger artists, unknown artists, emerging artists, people who are just genuinely good but don’t have any options.”

Esplund said, “I’m hoping there will be some real surprises...cool things, new things. That’s why we’re all in this business. To discover people and see things you hadn’t expected to see.” And he has seen a lot over his career as writer for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Sun, Art in America, Harper’s, The New Criterion, and The New Republic. He has taught at Parsons, The New School for Design, Rider University, and The New York Studio School MFA Program.

For further information check our NC Commercial Gallery listings, call the gallery at 704/370-6337, visit (www.elderart.com) or visit (www.carolinasgotart.com).

[ | April 2013 | Feature Articles | Download Carolina Arts' Current Issue | Carolina Arts Unleashed | Home | ]