OPEN 25 Private View

OPEN 25 art exhibition & competition

Valentine's night and it's the Private View for OPEN 25 2014! My drawing of Notre Dame is included & stupidly I'm quite excited! Primarily though I'm here tonight to take photographs of the event for this blog, not so easy when everyone is slurping wine and there's a real danger of knocking glasses over & damaging artworks.

Everyone from Leicester's world of arts & culture appears to have turned out, including my photo chums from the Leicester Mercury & Leicester City Council. We chat & slurp.

My mum arrives - she's so proud! (I'm in tears at this point - too much slurping, methinks!) To have a drawing chosen for a major exhibition in my hometown is a significant achievement & I'm genuinely pleased for myself & my mum who's no mean artist herself.

I reflect that my Royal painting (A Right Royal Street Party!) wasn't selected; it would have looked fabulous in this huge museum space with all ages to enjoy it. But I've bored you before about how one never knows what a judging panel is looking for. 

Sacre Blue Baleine by Oliver Marc Thomas Leger, winner of the Attenborough Prize 2014

In the end the Attenborough Prize 2014 was awarded to Oliver Marc Thomas Leger for a drawing of a habitat-providing whale. Very detailed, it must have taken ages.

The exhibition runs at New Walk Museum & Art Gallery, Leicester, until 27 April. There's some amazing work here. Pop along!

The Private View crowd remained for the 

announcement of prize winners

Leicester's New Walk Art Gallery was packed for the Private View

Artist Louise Ellerington (front, right) at the Private View

Lizzy beside her drawing of Notre Dame showing the space in Leicester's New Walk Art Gallery

Admiring Notre Dame. With permission

Lizzy's mum is so proud!

Entering Leicester's OPEN 25 art exhibition & competion

OPEN 25 art exhibition & competition

OPEN 25 is a well-established Leicester art exhibition & competition. This year my friend Louise Ellerington, who had asked me to exhibit in her Yuletide Exhibition, suggested I should enter.

So Max & I packed & loaded three of my artworks into the car and headed off to Leicester's New Walk Museum & Art Gallery. 

Leicester's New Walk Museum & Art Gallery

Readers of my blog will appreciate that my experience of entering art exhibitions has been varied, so it was with mixed feelings that I presented my pictures and saw them taken away to join the competition for inclusion in the exhibition.

Lizzy's artwork is received by Hugo Worthy, 
Exhibitions Officer, for exhibition consideration.
With permission.

OPEN 25 is now in its 25th year. Run by Leicester City Council and supported & sponsored by well known Leicester businesses & arts organisations, the Open exhibition allows young, emerging & established artists from the East Midlands a showcase plus the chance to win one of a number of prizes including the prestigious Attenborough Prize 2014.

Art forms accepted include painting, photography, illustration, sculpture, textiles & ceramics, and all works exhibited are for sale. Since the show is traditionally well attended, there's a good chance to sell, but first work has to be accepted into the exhibition. Even handing in my work I observed the standard of competition to be very high and as ever wondered if any of my pieces would be accepted.

Lined up to be judged for inclusion on Selection Day

POSTSCRIPT: My Gaudi-inspired drawing of Notre Dame has been accepted into the exhibition!! Hooray!! If you'd like to pop down and take a look, OPEN 25 runs 15 Feb - 27 April at New Walk Museum & Art Gallery, Leicester.