2023 Columbus Arts Festival Jury to Select Participating Artists

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Columbus Arts Festival presented by the American Electric Power Foundation will host the jury to select participating artists for the 2023 festival, Jan. 28-29. The jury will take place at the Greater Columbus Arts Council’s (GCAC) offices at 182 E. Long St. downtown.

“We’re proud of the jury we’ve assembled for the 2023 Columbus Arts Festival,” said Jenica Richards, Festival coordinator. “They bring decades of experience in practicing and teaching art to the table. We’re also happy to see that application numbers have returned close to their pre-pandemic levels. We received more than 800 applications from talented artists across the country, up from nearly 600 last year. The jury will have their work cut out for them in narrowing it down to approximately 225 exhibiting artists across 16 different categories.”

“We also received more than 40 applications for our Emerging Festival Artist program,” Richards added. “This is more than double the amount we received in 2022. We’re very proud of this program and how it showcases central Ohio artists who are new to the festival circuit.”

For their application, each artist submits four images of their work, one booth photo and an artist statement. The jury is conducted as a blind jury, with no identifying names or demographics provided for the artists being reviewed.

The 2023 Festival jurors represent practicing artists, curators and educators in Ohio:

• Daric Gill is an Ohio-based interdisciplinary artist specializing in painting and sculpture. He has an MFA from the University of Cincinnati and a BFA from Columbus College of Art & Design.
• Lance Johnson is an aerosol artist, originally from New York City and living in Columbus, whose work is a vehicle for urban development, using improvised collage to tell stories in a celebration of urban life.
• Char Norman is an accomplished fiber artist specializing in weaving, papermaking and fiber sculpture. She received an MFA from Claremont Graduate University and a BA from Scripps College.
• Ramya Ravisankar is a multidisciplinary artist, designer, educator and administrator who earned a Ph.D. in arts administration, education and policy from The Ohio State University and an MFA in studio art from Pratt Institute.
• Tariq Tarey is a filmmaker and documentary photographer based in Columbus whose work documents recent immigrants in their newly adopted country, the United States, and their personal stories.

The jury is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 28 and Sunday, Jan. 29 (ending times each day may vary). The Columbus Arts Festival jury is a great opportunity for curators and collectors to see and discover a wide variety of artists. Space is very limited.

The Arts Festival received 824 applications, including 217 from Ohio. Applying artists represent 45 states and two countries in addition to the United States – Belgium and Canada.

Festival Hours: Friday, June 9 from 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Saturday, June 10 from 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; and Sunday, June 11 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Please note: on Friday and Saturday artist booths close at 9 p.m.; artists have the option to stay open later.)

For more information on the Columbus Arts Festival, call (614) 221-8531 or visit columbusartsfestival.org.

For a selection of high-res images, visit the Festival’s press media page.

The Columbus Arts Festival is produced by the Greater Columbus Arts Council.

The 2023 Columbus Arts Festival is presented by the American Electric Power Foundation. Additional sponsors and partners include Bank of America, Bath & Body Works, Battelle, Cardinal Health, CoverMyMeds, Encova, Graeter’s, High Bank Distillery, IGS Energy, OSA Technology Partners, Paul-Henri Bourguignon Foundation, Rhinegeist and Whole World Lemonade. Media sponsors include ABC6/FOX28, CD92.9, Lamar Outdoor, Ohio Magazine, Orange Barrel Media, RSVP, WCBE, WOSU Public Media and WSNY/Mix 107.9.

Mission of the Greater Columbus Arts Council: To support and advance the arts and cultural fabric of Columbus. www.gcac.org

The Greater Columbus Arts Council receives major financial support from the City of Columbus, Franklin County Commissioners and the Ohio Arts Council. None of these funds are used for the production of the Columbus Arts Festival.

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