The Future Is Here Show Winners
Our Judge - Dan McAvey
Dan McAvey
Dan McAvey's artistic practice explores human connection and emotionality through the genre of landscape painting. He is a faculty member at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, where he teaches undergraduate and graduate level courses in studio art, art education, and humanities, empowering students to adopt a spirit of experimentation in their work and to embrace failure as a joyful part of developing their art.
Dan earned an MFA in Visual Studies from MCAD. Prior to pursuing art full-time, he worked in psychology and human development on college campuses. Dan also holds a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Minnesota and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Carleton College
1st Place - “Shady Oaks” by Erin Simenson
I especially enjoyed how the first-place artist interrogated marketing ploys that seem aimed at convincing us that we haven’t removed nature in order to make way for business. This piece could be a critique on the commercial development where we now stand: the Arbor Lakes shopping district was once filled with trees and small ponds but now holds very little of either. Visually, I appreciate the painter’s intentional use of contrasting color and line.
2nd Place - “Quantum Ion” by Barry Dyar
I was immediately drawn to the contrasting colors and values in our next piece. The artist has used these formal elements to create a visually magnetic scene that thrusts us out of our lived world and into a science-fiction reality.
3rd Place - “Bud Vase with Yellow" by Kristina Makousky
What first struck me about this piece is the elegant simplicity of it. This creation forces us to consider the struggle for diminishing resources and the increasingly separated lives we live.