The winner of this year’s award was Amie Louise Plante. She received an award of $2000. The other finalists out of a field of 54 applicants were Frankie Flood, Sergey Jivetin, Lonna Keller and Jessie Martin. The award was announced at SOFA Chicago where Plante’s work was shown by AJF member Charon Kransen Arts.
According to the judges, Amie Louise Plante’s work shows an exciting use of elements, a strong visual direction and a high degree of technical ability. ‘The work of Amie Plante distinctly reflects thoughtful personal vision and a developed visual “voice” and vocabulary. The hairpins and earrings have attitude – regal qualities implied by the forms, scale and proportions, a sense of majesty suggesting contemporary ceremonial wear. The intricate forms are a visual delight to explore – there is variety of line, color and material palette within the cohesive body of work,’ concluded Gail M Brown, one of the judges this year.
Plante is a BFA graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA graduate of Dartmouth College, now living in Massachusetts. Judges this year were Mia McEldowney, collector and independent curator; Gail M Brown, curator of contemporary craft; and Michael Jerry, Professor Emeritus of Sycracuse University.
