The State Museum of Pennsylvania Announces Finalists for Annual "Art of the State" Exhibition, Awards Set for June 28

HARRISBURG, Pa., June 9, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Finalists have been announced for "Art of the State: Pennsylvania 2015," an exhibition showcasing the talent, creativity and diversity of Pennsylvania's established and emerging artists.

The 48th annual exhibit opens to the public on Sunday, June 28 at The State Museum of Pennsylvania with an awards ceremony at 1:30 PM and an opening reception immediately following. Admission to The State Museum will be free that day.

The exhibit runs through September 13 and includes 126 works of art by 122 artists from 27 counties. This year's exhibit attracted 1,601 entries from 563 artists.

First, second and third-place honors are awarded in painting, photography, sculpture, craft and work on paper. Cash awards for each category are $500 for first place, $300 for second and $200 for third.

In addition, the William D. Davis Memorial Award for Drawing and The State Museum of Pennsylvania Purchase Award are selected.  The work selected for the purchase prize is bought by the State Museum and becomes part of the museum's permanent collection.

Jurors for the exhibition include:

Painting and Work on Paper:
Margaret Winslow, Associate Curator for Contemporary Art
Delaware Art Museum

Photography:
Andargé Asfaw, Photographer, Educator, Author
Silver Spring, Maryland

Three Dimensional Craft and Sculpture:
Professor Dustin Davis, Department of Visual Arts
Frostburg State University, Frostburg, Maryland

Art of the State 2015 Awards Juror:
Catherine Prescott, Adjunct Professor of Visual Arts,
Messiah College, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania

The exhibit is co-sponsored by The State Museum and Jump Street. Together the organizations present more than $6,500 in cash awards to the winners.

Jump Street is a Harrisburg-based non-profit organization dedicated to developing educational and economic opportunities with the arts for all age groups.

The State Museum of Pennsylvania, adjacent to the State Capitol in Harrisburg, is one of 25 historic sites and museums administered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission as part of the Pennsylvania Trails of History^®. The State Museum offers expansive collections interpreting Pennsylvania's fascinating heritage.

With exhibits examining the dawn of geologic time, the Native American experience, the colonial and revolutionary eras, a pivotal Civil War battleground, and the Commonwealth's vast industrial age, The State Museum demonstrates that Pennsylvania's story is America's story.

Museum hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $7 for adults, $6 for senior citizens (ages 65 and up), and $4 for children (ages 1-11).

For more information about the museum, visit www.statemuseumpa.org.

MEDIA CONTACT: Howard Pollman 717-705-8639

Artists selected to exhibit at the 2015 "Art of the State" competition are listed by county:

Adams                       
Carol Foerster
Tim Hirneisen
Sharon Pierce McCullough
Joh Ricci
Theodore Scarpino
Dennis Steinauer

Allegheny                  
Crystal Armagost
Rae Gold
Mike Korsak
Maria Mangano
Ceres Rangos
Shawn Watrous

Berks             
Edward Babiarz
Eileen Finegan
Franklin Fretz
James Maria
Sharon Merkel
Steve Scheuring
Don Weaver

Blair               
Allen Capriotti

Bucks            
Reena Brooks
Chung Chak
Dorine Lerner
Donna Lovely
Lisa McGovern
Hilary Peirce
Csilla Sadloch

Cambria                    
Kathleen Kase Burk

Centre                       
Jean Forsberg
Bill Seay
Phillip Sollman
Jeanne Stevens-Sollman
Xiong Xuan

Chester                     
Mark Bockrath
James Evangelista
Monique Kendikian-Sarkessian
Jennifer Nilsen
Donna Usher

Crawford                   
Chuck Johnson

Cumberland              
Linda Benzon
Jocelyn Carpenter
Geraldine Clark
John Corcoran
Ward Davenny
Elwood Derricks
Nicole Dube
Gay Foltz
Brenton Good
Richard Harrison
Marvin Israel
Bernard LeVan
Gay McGeary
Michael Munchel
Diane Peresie
Theodore Van Pelt
Shawn Williams
Erma Martin Yost
Harold Zabady

Dauphin                    
Anita Chesek
Karen Commings
Peter Kornweiss
Bryson Leidich
Jason Lyons
Jeff Wiles

Delaware                   
Lisa Burger-Lentz
Ellen Cooper
Lauren Litwa Holden
Alan Soffer

Erie                
Passle Helminski
Tom Hubert

Fayette                      
Bill Snyder

Jefferson
Kyle Yates

Lancaster                  
Becky Blosser
Denny Bond
Line Bruntse
Daniel Burns
Wendy Edsall-Kerwin
Teri Hay
Edwin Huddle
Jennifer MacNeill
Sue Reno
Jason Thompson
John Tracy

Lebanon                    
Michael Allen
Meghan Baum

Lehigh                       
Anna Chupa
Jason Travers
Peter Treiber

Montgomery             
Laszlo Bagi
Ellen Carver
Chris Cox
Constance Culpepper
Kass Morin Freeman
Lorrain Glessner
Robert Hakun
Barbara Handler
Nancy Neill
Cathy Rappeport
Dganit Zauberman
Drew Zimmerman

Northumberland                  
Cheryl Fallon

Perry
Craig Cully

Philadelphia              
Linda Lee Alter
Constance Cone
Claudia Eckel
Paul Hamanaka
Emily Squires Levine
Martha Kent Martin
Michael Pavol
Robert Reinhardt
James Rose
Ira Upin
Jon Weary

Schuylkill                  
Robert Stickloon

Union             
Pamela Souders

Wayne                       
Ellen Silberlicht

Wyoming                   
Kevin Vogrin

York               
James Crowley
Richard Hoff
Charles Hubbard
Jo Margolis
Bruce Stank

SOURCE Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission