De'VIA national winners announced - NEWS

From: League for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing - Oct 29, 2004

For more information:
Sharon Limpus
615-599-0080 (office) or 615-554-9938 (cell)
limpus@mindspring.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATIONAL De'VIA ART COMPETITION WINNERS ANNOUNCED;
GENRE REPRESENTS DEAF ARTISTS, PERCEPTIONS BASED ON DEAF EXPERIENCES

[Nashville, Tenn. – October 29, 2004] – Susan Dupor, Lake Geneva, Wis., captured the "Best of Show" prize and a $1,500 award for her painting, Gestational Rhapsody, at Tennessee's First National Juried De'VIA (Deaf View/Image Art) Competition in Nashville, Tenn.

Dupor and other artists were recognized at the exhibit's national debut at The Frist Center for the Visual Arts. De'VIA was presented by MCI Tennessee Relay Services and supported by the League for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Nashville, Tenn. The League is the sole provider of qualified, comprehensive services to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in a 16-county Middle Tennessee region.

The De'VIA competition featured artists nationwide who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or have a strong connection with the Deaf Community such as family members or interpreters. The genre represents Deaf artists and perceptions based on their Deaf experiences.

"For the past fifteen years, as a Deaf artist, I have been painting and exploring Deaf themes," said Dupor. "It has been an enjoyable long ride allowing me to express my experiences through the visual arts and sharing with others. Currently, I am using deaf friends posing as models signing words that pertain to the natural environment. The world that I exist in is colorful and dynamic. It is a great fortune, good and inspiration to be a participating member of the Deaf culture and I am proud to paint about it."

Winners in the Professional Division included:
First Place
Rhiannon Gurley, Springfield, Ill.
I Can Barely Hear You

Second Place
Tony L. McGregor, Ph.D., Austin, Texas
Marc, May '76

Third Place
Steve Hilton, Tempe, Ariz.
Identity in Wood

Honorable Mentions
Iris Nelia Aranda, Kenosha, Wis.
Face of Communication
Dawn Barnett, San Rafael, Calif.
Innocent
Bannon Fu, Santa Monica, Calif.
Swelling #4
Robert F. Walker, Little Rock, Ark.
Deaficide of the Innocent

Other Finalists
Dawn Barnett, San Rafael, Calif.
Smell the Gossip
Jeff B. Carroll, Bromley, Ky.
Hand Extension
Susan Dupor, Lake Geneva, Wis.
Twenty Handshapes Beneath
Marian Lucas, Minneapolis, Minn.
Fenced No Barriers
Tony L. McGregor, Ph.D., Austin, Texas
Congrats, It's a Deaf Boy!

Winners in the Amateur Division include:
First Place
Andrew Winter, Spring Hill, Tenn.
Fishin' Buddies

Second Place
Chrystina Dennie, West Hartford, Conn.
Deaf Hand on Thing and Place

Third Place
Woody Meadows, Morganton, N.C.
I Can't Hear You, Speak to You, Sign to You, yet YOU COULD LEARN TO SIGN TO ME

Honorable Mentions
Ana Geroogy, Algoma, Wis.
The Kitchen
Hope Lonkert, Morganton, N.C.
Caught Frustrated Between Two Worlds: Deaf and Hearing
Mario Angel Ramirez, Jr., Huntington Park, Calif.
Adam and Eve

Professors of art from Austin Peay State University served as the jury panel. They included Kell Black, professor, Drawing; Cindy Marsh, professor, Printmaking and Typography; Greg Schlanger, professor, Sculpture; and Ken Shipley, associate professor, Ceramics and Sculpture.

For additional information about De'Via or the League, call 615-248-8828 or visit www.leagueforthedeaf.com

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