2016 Glass Art Awards: entries now open

Entries are now open to the 2016 Glass Art Awards; entry forms must be submitted by 5 February 2016.

The Glass Art Awards are part of the Festival of Glass, now in its sixth year. Entries will be judged and announced during the Festival's Expo on Sunday 21 February 2016.

There are four Categories:

·      Functional Glass Art

·      Sculptural Glass Art

·      Wearable Glass Art

·      Glass-related Photography.

Each Category has two Divisions:

·      Intermediate (8 - 18 years old)

·      Open (19 years of age and older).

In each Category, the Intermediate Division has a first prize of $100 and a second prize of $50; and the Open Division has a first prize of $200 and a second prize of $100.

There are also two special Awards:

Second Life Glass Art Award ($1,000)

This Award will go to the best piece of glass art that is made solely by recycling glass. This is the second year of this Award, which is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Drysdale. The Festival of Glass committee is very grateful to the Rotary Club for its generosity. The theme of this year's Award is "A Gift to the World", to coincide with International Rotary's theme for 2015 - 2016 - "Be a gift to the world".

Entries will be judged by the 2016 judging panel:- Mark  Edwards (Wauthorong Glass), Mercedes Drummond (Glass Art Awards convenor) and a representative of the Rotary Club of Drysdale.

Bella Wein Glass Art Award ($500)

This Award will go to the piece of glass art that best interprets the identity of the Bellarine Peninsula. The Award celebrates the continuity between the past and the present - "Bella Wein" is the name given to the Peninsula by the area's original owners, the Wathaurong people. 

This is a new award and is sponsored by the Clifton Springs and Curlewis Lions Club. The Festival of Glass committee is very grateful to the Lions for their generosity.

Entries will be judged by the 2016 judging panel:- Mark  Edwards (Wauthorong Glass), Mercedes Drummond (Glass Art Awards convenor) and a representative of The Clifton Springs and Curlewis Lion Club.

Information, entry forms and conditions of entry for the 2016 Glass Art awards are on the Festival of Glass web site : www.festivalofglass.net.au

2016 Festival of Glass introduces a Treasure Hunt!

The 2016 Festival of Glass will feature a novel addition - a Treasure Hunt.

The Treasure Hunt will promote local glass artists, while also promoting local businesses and involving them in the Festival.

Each local business is being asked to commission a Glass Art Treasure from a glass artist who will exhibit at the 2016 Festival Expo. In return, the Festival will promote the business's involvement, using the Festival's web site and blog, its Facebook page (over 500 followers), other social media platforms and local media releases. The outcome for the business should be an increase in custom.

How will it work?
The Treasure Hunt will run between Monday 1 February and Sunday 21 February 2016. Each participating business will receive a poster for their window, saying that they are part of the Treasure Hunt; a Glass Art Treasure to display prominently; a glass Tiny Treasure to display - less prominently; and Treasure Hunt forms.

Each business will stamp the Treasure Hunt form of each Treasure Hunter who spots the business's Tiny Treasure and buys something (or is a regular customer). Treasure Hunters will enter their completed Treasure Hunt forms in a draw for the Glass Art Treasures, which will be held at the 2016 Festival of Glass Expo (Sunday 21st February 10.00am - 4.00pm at Christian College, Drysdale).

Engaging the community
Commissioning pieces of glass art and then creating them can take time, so Festival committee members are already inviting local businesses to be part of the Treasure Hunt and to think about what they'd like to commission. The response has been very positive, with business owners intrigued by the idea of the Treasure Hunt ... and by its potential to increase their custom. 

The Treasure Hunt is proving to be a real boost to business involvement in the Festival of Glass, meeting the committee's aim of engaging the local community in promoting the work of local glass artists and growing the area's reputation as a centre of glass-related activities. The number of local individuals, groups, organisations and businesses involved in the Festival grows gradually each year and 2016 will be no exception.
 
Each year, something more
The Treasure Hunt will be a novel addition to the Festival of Glass, now in its sixth year. Each year, the Festival committee adds a new feature to maintain interest in the Festival. For example, the 2015 Festival featured internationally renowned Sydney glass artist Mark Eliott, who held demonstrations of glass art at the Festival Expo and ran workshops in the following week. Mark will return to the 2016 Festival, along with fellow glass artist Peter Minson. The 2014 Festival included Glass on Film - a rolling programme of short films about glass. Glass on Film was also a feature of the 2015 Festival and will be part of the 2016 Festival.