Fair entries bring back blue ribbons

Exhibits sent in by three local artists returned home with top honors this year.

Terree Pino, Anny Newport and Charity Hommel won a collection of awards for their artwork at the 2016 Southeast Alaska State Fair in Haines this July, which proceeded from there to be shown at the State Fair in Palmer. The exhibits have since migrated back to their origins and a collection of them are on display in the window of Stikine River Gifts and Apparel.

Specializing in photography, Hommel brought back seven ribbons in all from Haines, with one blue ribbon for her work in the Digitally Manipulated Photography category, five second-place ribbons for photos in the Fauna, Flora, Macrophotography and Landscapes categories, and one third-place winner for Landscapes, Cityscapes and Seascapes.

Newport's submissions included a mermaid doll, which won first place for Sewing - Toys and Dolls at Haines and took the division at Haines. The exhibit went on to take first premium in Palmer. Sewn using hosiery for the face and bosom and with eyes of clay, she explained the doll was of her own unique design.

"I just try to make things that are different," she said.

Her other winning submission was a Doc Martens boot redecorated to look like a fairy tale house. It took first place for the Hobbies and Crafts division, and was also named a judge's choice exhibit.

Sending in artwork to the fair since 1984, Newport said she tries to keep her entries different one year to the next.

"All of my ideas, they've kind of evolved from one thing to another," she said. Though never having gone to the fair in Haines herself, with the exception of one year her articles have been a regular feature, bringing back an assortment of ribbons.

Pino's pieces included an oyster shell painted with one of the area's seaside coves. It brought back a blue ribbon for the Hobbies and Crafts Naturecraft division. The shell she used was found on Prince of Wales Island, unique in that it was two shells which had grown together.

"It made the perfect stand," she said.

Another of her submissions was an oil painting based on a scene from the Stikine River. "I took photos of the area," Pino explained. "Months later I finally started painting." She said she'd taken some artistic license with the seasons, opting for fall colors instead of spring.

Though for a long time a person with artistic bents, she explained it is only the third year of her working with oils. She joked that her mother had dissuaded her from pursuing painting because she didn't want her daughter to become a starving artist. After Pino's own children had come and grown, she found she had the time to take up the medium. She started with a Bob Ross painting course hosted by Caroline Ottesen, learning "wet on wet" technique.

From the get-go, Pino's paintings brought back prizes from the fair. Her painting of the Elephant's Nose in sunset brought back a blue ribbon in 2014, as did her painting of mountains with the Northern Lights the following year. This year it brought back a first place for the bracket.

"It was just something inside of me that was waiting to come out," she explained. "I never considered myself an artist until I started painting,"

This year Wrangell's entries almost missed the fair. Until recent years, the Chamber of Commerce has helped organize the collection and transportation of local artworks. At the moment, Wrangell is the only community on the SE Fair's list which does not have a designated town representative to coordinate exhibits.

"This year they didn't let us know," said Newport. She considered herself fortunate enough to have found someone in Petersburg already headed to Haines to send her work with, and the other artists similarly found their own way to submit them.

"Next year we're hoping to have some better organization," she said. As she does not want to miss an opportunity to represent the town, Newport suggested they may organize a planning committee with other artists for next year.