The Big Show

Opening Reception

Friday July 1, 2011
6:30 – 8:30 PM
Awards announced at 7 PM

DJ set by Glasnost 
Tasty treats by Cut and Fry, Phamily Bites, and What’s Up Cupcake

The Big Show is Lawndale Art Center’s annual open-call, juried exhibition. It has been an important venue through which emerging and under-represented Houston area artists gain exposure since the show’s conception in 1984. The Big Show was formerly the East End Show, sponsored by the East End Progress Association, at Lawndale’s original location.

Each year Lawndale Art Center invites a guest juror to select from work submitted by artists living within 100 miles of Houston. Artists are invited to bring up to three works of art, not previously shown in Houston, to Lawndale Art Center where the work is juried on-site for a chance to be included in the show and a shot at one of three cash prizes.

The Big Show 2011 award winners selected by guest juror, Larissa Harris, Curator at Queens Museum of Art, were announced at the opening reception on July 1, 2010. $3000 in cash awards were divided among three artists chosen by the juror.

Three $1,000 cash awards were awarded to:
Rodney Flores
Emily Grenader
Matt Messinger

A total of 121 works by 73 artists were selected for the exhibition from 972 works submitted by 404 artists. Artists selected for the exhibition include:

Sarita Ackerman, Dran Alessi, Fred Allen, Cody Arnall, Heather Bause, Mark Benham, Kassandra Bergman, Bexar, N. Blanca, Brian Campbell, Sondra Chambers, Michelle Chen-Dubose, Kristen Cliburn, Felipe Contreras, Josh Urban Davis, Adrian de la Cerda, Shannon Duckworth, John Earles, Noah Edmundson, Loli Fernandez, Bill Fester, Rodney Flores, Bryan Keith Gardner, GONZO247, David P. Gray, Emily Grenader, Brent Groves, Mitch Samuels “Grystar”, Jimmy Houston, Cynthia Hoyt, Clare Hulfish, Sandra A. Jacobs, Jesse A. Kantu, Hogan Kimbrell, Brent Kramlich, Galina Kurlat, Ya La ‘Ford, Leslie Magdaleno, Keith McNay, Matt Messinger, Merilee Minshew, Rahul Mitra, Crystal Murley, Amy Newland, Emily Peacock, Page Piland, Silvina Pinal, Julon Pinkston, Britt Ragsdale, Dylan Roberts, Radu Runcanu, Stephanie Saint Sanchez, Charlie Jean Sartwelle, Wade Schmitz, Ruth Shouval, Marjorie Silverstein, Emily Sloan, Belinda Smith, Maria Smits, Susan Spjut, Troy Stanley, Alexine O. Stevens, John Sturtevant, Charles Tatum II, J E Theriot, Sandy Tramel, Patrick Turk, Rubia Van Roodselaar, Tanja Vaughn, Lillian Warren, Catherine Winkler Rayroud, William Witte, Michele A. Zacks

Larissa Harris, Curator
Queens Museum of Art

Larissa Harris is a curator at the Queens Museum of Art. Exhibitions at QMA include Red Lines Housing Crisis Learning Center, a project on home finance by artist and urban designer Damon Rich; The Curse of Bigness, which featured major works by Survival Research Laboratories, J. Morgan Puett, and Dexter Sinister, among others; and the first U.S. solo presentation of Korean video and performance artist Sung Hwan Kim. In addition, she is helping plan a new long-term artist residency in Corona, Queens, the largely new-immigrant neighborhood on which the museum borders, with partners at Queens College CUNY. The first long-term resident is Tania Bruguera, invited in partnership with Creative Time. From 2004-2008 she was associate director at the Center for Advanced Visual Studies at MIT where she and staff commissioned and produced new work by Michael Smith, Damon Rich/ the Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP), John Malpede, and Xavier Le Roy; instituted a visiting artist series (Vito Acconci/ Acconci Studio, Miranda July, Judith Barry, Seth Price, Dexter Sinister, and Rachel Harrison, among others); a student residency program; and a residency for Boston-area artists.

Please join Lawndale and Houston’s talented Big Show artists for short, informal presentations about their work. Presentations start at 6 PM each night at Lawndale Art Center. Come early as seating is limited.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Cody Arnall
N. Blanca
Loli Fernandez
Rodney Flores
David Gray
Claire Hulfish
Galina Kurlat
Rahul Mitra
Silvina Pinal
Julon Pinkston
Britt Ragsdale
Radu Runcanu
Stephanie Saint Sanchez
Emily Sloan
JE Theriot
Patrick Turk
Lillian Warren
Catherine Winkler Rayroud
Michele Zacks

as of July 8, 2011

IN KIND
CultureMap
Anita & David Garten
Jenny & Mark Johnson
Poparazzi’s Popcorn
ROLE A|F|M Magazine
Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Staples
United Airlines

ART HOUSE THEATER 
Amegy Bank of Texas
Anonymous
Joan Hohlt & Roger Wich Foundation
Diana Hudson & Lee Kaplan
Kathrine G. McGovern
Scott R. Sparvero
IMAX
Jereann Chaney
H. Irving Schweppe, Jr. M.D.
Isabel & Wallace Wilson

DRIVE-IN CINEMA
Art Supply
The Crim Law Firm, P.C.
Wayne & Beverley Gilbert
Michael Clark & Sallie Morian
Joe & Anne Romano
Sara Dodd-Spickelmier & Keith D. Spickelmier

The Big Show 2011 CultureMap People’s Choice Award goes to Britt Ragsdale. Congratulations! Over 2,800 people visited this year’s edition of The Big Show. Visitors used their web-enabled mobile phone to scan the QR code on the label of their favorite work to determine this year’s winner. Britt Ragsdale’s video titled Duet received 165 votes! Along with CultureMap fame, Britt will receive an honorary 1 year membership to Lawndale, a pretty awesome trophy and The People’s stamp of approval!