Four finalists have been named for the 2023 Hudgens Georgia Art Prize. With a cash award of $50,000 and an invitation for a solo exhibition for one artist, the Hudgens Prize is one of the largest art awards given in the entire nation, and is given only to Georgia residents.
The four finalists are:
Gay
Amodu
Olu Amoda of Atlanta works as a sculptor, muralist, furniture designer, and multimedia artist, Amoda is best known for using repurposed materials found from the detritus of consumer culture. Amoda graduated in sculpture from Auchi Polytechnic, Nigeria, and received a Master’s Degree of Fine Arts from Georgia Southern University.
Shanequa Gay of Atlanta draws upon ritual and personal memory, storytelling, fantasy, and the deep well of southern black traditions found in her home place of Atlanta. She engages in this practice through installations, paintings, performance, photography, video and monumental sculptural figures. Gay received her BA from the Savannah College of Art and Design and an MFA from Georgia State University.
Wright
Self
Jessica Self is a contemporary artist based in Atlanta., who works with wax, wool, and wood to create mixed media figurative sculptures. Self received her BFA from Warren Wilson College (NC) and MFA from Georgia State University.
Jamele Wright of Atlanta is a multi-disciplinary artist whose work is concerned with the Black American vernacular experience, creating a conversation between family, tradition, the spiritual and material relationships between Africa and the South”. Wright graduated from Georgia State University with a B.A. in Art History, and received his MFA from School of Visual Arts in New York City.
All four artists will display their work in the Hudgens Prize Finalists’ Exhibition on August 6 through October 16, 2022. Each will receive a $1,500 cash stipend to help cover expenses relating to the exhibition.
The finalists were selected by a jury composed of Lauren Tate Baeza, Fred and Rita Richman Curator of African American Art at The High Museum of Art; Jamaal Barber, artist, printmaker and professor at Georgia State University; and Thomas (Tom) Francis, painter and Professor Emeritus, Savannah College of Art and Design.
The $50,000 Hudgens Prize will be awarded by the jury panel based on in-person visits to the four Finalists’ studios and the works on view in the Hudgens Prize Finalists’ Exhibition. The Prize winner will be announced at the Hudgens Prize Award Celebration, which will take place in October, 2022. The Finalists will also offer artist’s talks at the Hudgens Center during the exhibition, to be scheduled soon.
The purpose of the Hudgens Prize competition is to elevate and promote the arts in Georgia while offering a transformational opportunity for the winning artist. The Hudgens Prize was last awarded in 2019 to Paul Stephen Benjamin. Benjamin continues to receive nationwide recognition following receipt of the Hudgens Prize award and his solo exhibition at the Hudgens in 2020, including a recent exhibition, Black Form, at Davidson College’s Van Every | Smith Galleries.
GGC Class of 2022 will hear commencement address by poet
Stewart
Fourth Congressional District Poet Laureate Hank Stewart will address the Class of 2022 at Georgia Gwinnett College’s (GGC) spring commencement ceremony at 10 a.m., Wednesday, May 11, at Gas South Arena. The 500 members of the Class of 2022 will hear from commencement student speaker Eric Thomas Jr. 25, of Norcross. Thomas will outline their journey to GGC as well as their college experience.
Stewart was declared Poet Laureate for Georgia’s 4th Congressional District by Congressman Hank Johnson in 2016. Stewart has produced five poetry books, six CDs, a DVD and a coffee table book commemorating his career.
Norcross offers relief for firms hit by pandemic losses
The City of Norcross, in partnership with Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs (ACE), has launched the Small Business Grant Program to provide $600,000 of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to qualified small businesses to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19.
The ARPA Small Business Grant Program will provide financial assistance for businesses that have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. The program will also offer funds to qualified small businesses within the city limits of Norcross. The funds may be used for operating expenses, including rent, utility bills, payroll and other qualifying expenses.
To qualify, businesses must meet certain criteria, including having an active City of Norcross Business License for years 2019–2021; the ability to demonstrate an annual revenue decline of 25 percent or more for tax years 2019 and 2020; and being recognized as a domestic corporation in good standing in the State of Georgia and more. Applicants must demonstrate both need, and appropriate use of funds, by submitting appropriate financial documentation and receipts.
- The grant application process launched May 2 and ends on June 2, 2022. For more information or to apply, visit this webpage.
Gwinnett Tech, Ford announce educational partnership
Gwinnett Technical College has a new partnership. It is an alliance with Ford Motor Company working with the college’s Automotive Student Service Educational Training (ASSET). The program is dedicated to providing Ford and Lincoln dealerships with technicians highly-trained in Ford service technologies and diagnostic and repair methods.
The Ford ASSET program is a two-year program that offers students a hands-on approach to learning. Like Ford dealerships, the automotive lab is equipped with technologically advanced tools and systems. Classrooms are equipped with the same parts, tools, and vehicles they would see at most Ford dealerships.
Fifteen local Ford dealerships funded the purchase of six training vehicles, Ford training curriculum and service manuals, Ford specific tools and parts and training equipment. The new classroom and lab are professional-level and will allow Gwinnett Tech students to work first-hand with sophisticated, cutting-edge technology.
In addition to students, Ford focuses on faculty, as well. Gwinnett Tech instructors were trained on Ford products and have access to tools and resources to enhance student learning. In addition, the program allows Gwinnett Tech to use and fully integrate Ford’s technical training library to ensure they always have a working knowledge of the latest automotive systems.
Realtors select Diggs to get $4,000 scholarship
Diggs
Alexander Diggs of Brookwood High School received a $4,000 college scholarship from the Gwinnett County Board of Realtors Scholarship Foundation. He plans to attend Kennesaw State University and major in finance. He is also an Honor Roll student with all A’s and on the Football Leadership Council. Alexander is the son of Kenya and Stanley Diggs. Kenya is a Realtor with Palmer House Properties. This is the 29th year that the Foundation, through the Northeast Atlanta Metro Association of Realtors, has presented a scholarship to an outstanding high school senior.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Tax Commissioner Porter dies from cancer
Gwinnett Tax Commissioner Tiffany P. Porter died May 5 from cancer. Ms. Porter, of Lilburn, 43, was mother of four children, Tori, 15, Zoe, 17, Nia, 20, and Brandon, 23.
Porter
She had been tax commissioner for 16 months. She was the first African American tax commissioner in Gwinnett County. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in New Jersey. She was a graduate of Hampton University in music; had a law degree from Emory, and an MBA from Georgia State University.
For more than 20 years, Ms. Porter resided in Gwinnett County, attended Life Church International in Duluth and was a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.
As the law dictates, Chief Deputy Denise Mitchell will execute the duties of the office until being sworn in to complete the remainder of Ms. Porter’s term through Dec. 31, 2024. Funeral arrangements were not complete at deadline.
Follow Us