$5,000 Grand Prize: MSHP Announces Art Contest in Honor of New Mackinac Island Art Museum
November 17, 2009
Mackinac Island, Mich. — In honor of the July 2010 grand opening of the new Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum at the Indian Dormitory on Mackinac Island, Mackinac State Historic Parks (MSHP) is sounding a call to artists to enter a purchase award art contest. The prize of $5,000, generously donated by the Mackinac Arts Council, will be awarded to the winning artist. Contest Guidelines & Application
Artwork must be Mackinac Island-related. Submissions, with $25 non-refundable entry fee, should be two-dimensional, original art in any media—excluding photographs—from living artists. One entry per artist is permitted.
“We’re excited to initiate this contest and look forward to seeing the entries and the different ways that Mackinac can inspire artists,” said Steve Brisson, chief curator of MSHP. |
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Indian Dormitory on Mackinac Island |
The winning artwork and all rights of copyright will become the property of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission and the artwork will be used on the grand opening poster, displayed at the art museum during the summer of 2010, and added to the permanent collection of MSHP. Entries, which must be postmarked no later than April 1, 2010, will be juried by the Mackinac State Historic Parks’ Collections Committee from a color print or CD. Log onto MackinacParks.com and click on Mackinac Island State Park/Art Museum to learn more.
The Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum will center around fine and decorative arts inspired by Mackinac Island through the ages from Native American baskets to present-day paintings of the island by residents. The art museum is designed to showcase historic treasures already in the MSHP collection and to inspire creativity in others.
“The art museum will bring together Mackinac art created over the centuries, as well as feature the works of present-day artists,” Brisson said. “In one building we will see Mackinac-inspired art from today and works from nearly two centuries ago. In fact, as we plan to exhibit some decorated prehistoric pottery excavated from the actual site of the art museum, we will be exhibiting art work from hundreds of years ago.”
The museum will also be filled with many interactive exhibits. “We will attempt to engage the visitor through the use of audiovisual and hands-on techniques and special programs to fully immerse themselves in the art. Our hope is that such exhibits will spark conversations about the pieces and perhaps what they think the work meant to the artist, to the original viewers, and to themselves,” Brisson commented.
The museum is housed inside the historic 1838 Indian Dormitory building, which is currently undergoing a much needed restoration. This restoration, along with the creation of the art museum, is generously funded by the Richard and Jane Manoogian Foundation.
The art museum will be open seven days a week from July through mid-October 2010, and then early May through mid-October thereafter. Tentative hours will be 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. daily from July - August 21 and 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. daily from August 22 - October 10. Daily admission will be $5.00 adults, $3.50 youth aged 5-17, and free for children four and under and Mackinac Associates members. The building will be available for evening wedding and special event rental.
Contest Guidelines & Application
Mackinac State Historic Parks, a family of living history museums and parks in northern Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac, is an agency within the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Its sites—which are accredited by the American Association of Museums—include Fort Mackinac, Mackinac Island State Park, Historic Downtown, and the Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum on Mackinac Island, and Colonial Michilimackinac, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City. Mackinac State Historic Parks is governed by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, established in 1895 to protect, preserve and present the parks’ rich historic and natural resources for the education and recreation of future generations. Visitor information is available at 231-436-4100.
