Art BeatREVIEWS

Blue Man Group Announces the Winners of 2013 Chicago Art Competition

Blue Man Group Announces the Winners of 2013 Chicago Art Competitionblue man group

 At Briar Street Theatre, 3133 N. Halsted, Chicago

In conjunction with the Chicago Expo Art Week, the Blue Man Group announces the six winners of their art competition for 2013 at the Briar Street Theatre. The art competition, open to professional and emerging artists, is centered around the Blue Man Group’s mission statement: celebrating creativity, connectedness, and making art accessible to all.  The competition is open to many forms of two dimensional mediums from painting, drawing, and printmaking, to digital art, and photography. The art competition is focused on art which is inspired by the exuberant and joyful essence of Blue Man Group without featuring a blue man. The winners of the competition each receive a cash prize and get to exhibit their original work in the lobby of the Briar Street Theatre as well as a ten by ten foot reproduction of each piece which will be hung in the semi-permanent Outdoor Art Gallery on the South facing exterior wall of the theatre.

The six winners of the art competition this year are artists from New Jersey to California. The winning artwork is abstract, colorful, and united through the inspiration and energy of Blue Man Group. The winners were announced by Blue Man Group in a fun and colorful performance which maintains the same energy of their other performances. Blue Man Group is a psychedelic performance of percussion and color, and entertaining and humorous stunts performed on stage.

Kathy Czopek from St. Louis, painted “Blue Frenzy” which is inspired by the energy, colors, rhythm and chaos of the live Blue Man Group experience.

blue man group art winner 2013

 Kuzana Ogg from Bakersfield, CA, painted “Khshathra” is inspired by the dancing figure which she states as Epitomizing the Excitement of participating in the live musical performance that is Blue Man Group.

ogg

 

Dan Olvera, a native Chicagoan created his photography piece “FREN Z” which is inspired by the joy, whimsy, and energy of the show.

olvera

Audrius Plioplys from Chicago created “Blue Consciousness” which is a digital work consisting of brain scans and photos of neurons. His piece illustrates the joyful essence of Blue Man Group, which comes from the unbridled creativity, imagination and humor, all arising from the interactions of the brain’s neurons.

plioplys

Cody Rounds from Mahwah, New Jersey, painted “Pulse” which illustrates what music looks like, aiming to act as a physical realization of the beauty of harmony, play and expression of emotion that music inspires in the human spirit.

pulse

Wind Flow Photography, a Chicago photography company made up by Candace Wark and Shirley Nannini, created “Tangled All in Blue 5” which depicts smoke as it is affected by the wind, which reflects their interpretation of Blue Man Group as an ever changing dynamic of patterns that evolve and move.

tangled

These fun and colorful abstract pieces of art fit nicely in the Briar Street Theatre where they add to the colorful energy of Blue Man Group. People who enjoy the interesting and unique experience of Blue Man Group will enjoy the winning artwork from this competition. The artwork is visible on the South outer  wall of Briar Street Theatre, but if you are interested in the work , I would recommend going inside to see the original pieces.

Recommended

Reviewed by Samuel Erza Fisch

Date Reviewed: September 20, 2013

www.blueman.com

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