Artists Encouraged to Submit Art for the 26th Annual Junque Arte Competition and Exhibition

Press release from the Humboldt Arts Council:

Bernadette Vielbig The Weight of Wisdom

Calling all artists! The Humboldt Arts Council will be accepting entries for the 26^th Annual Junque Arte Competition and Exhibition after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. We look forward to seeing our community of artists on Thursday, September 22^nd from noon to 5 p.m. for the submission of works. The exhibition will run from October 1^st to November 27^th in the Thonson Gallery. An opening reception will be held October 1st, from 6 to 9 p.m. during First Saturday Night Arts Alive! The exhibition is sponsored by Recology Humboldt County.

Bernadette Vielbig was born and raised on a small self-sufficient farm in northern California.  As a first generation American born of naturalized citizen parents, her informative years left an impression of usefulness in all things deep in her psyche. Bernadette studied fine art and design throughout her youth and earned a BA in Studio Art from Humboldt State University and went on to earn a Masters of Fine Art with studio concentrations in sculpture and design from Louisiana State University.  While attending LSU she taught three-dimensional design and drawing classes before earning her letters.  During her career as an academic she was a faculty specialist in new facilities, labs, building design and accomplished such tasks at the University of South Carolina Columbia, Central Michigan University where she was also awarded the Stephen F Barstow Artist in Residence before moving onto a tenure track role as the sole faculty in the sculpture area curriculum at Spokane Falls Community College in eastern Washington.  Bernadette left her post and tenure in eastern WA to come back home to northern California.  In spring 2017 she landed on the edge in Eureka where she plans to stay.  Bernadette occasionally teaches workshops or lectures at large, and is active in her own studio practice research.  She is settling into a life back in Humboldt county and is working towards teaching small format workshops to the public in the near future at her live/work space in Eureka.

Her work has been featured nationally at gallery & museum venues including the Kohler Design Center, Chrysler Museum of Art, NOLA Contemporary Art Center, and the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture.  She is represented in both public and private collections across the country as well.  Vielbig has received numerous grants and awards for her work and has held positions with several artist-in-residence programs nationally.  Her media choices and skill set in fine art are vast, one could almost say limitless; she works with what she has, where she is.  An accomplished fabricator, caster, and builder she often starts with the found object as a launching point. Her studio practice is constantly exploring new ways of communicating visually with old things.

To be eligible, art works must be made of 100% recycled materials. Please review detailed entry guidelines available at the Museum or at www.humboldtarts.org.  Adult, Youth, and Group submissions will be accepted, and awards are given for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place within each category as well as a Best of Show Award. Awards will be presented to this year’s winners October 1^st at 5:30 p.m., prior to the First Saturday Night Arts Alive! The public is invited to attend.