Al Young Art Show 2017: Two Locations, One Show

by Elise Goitia '18

Art at Knox can't be contained, which was evident at this year's Al Young Art Show, where more than 200 pieces in a variety of mediums were on display in both the Ford Center for Fine Arts and the new Whitcomb Art Center.

The juror for this year's show was abstract painter Elizabeth Gourlay, who also gave a talk on her work prior to the presentation of awards.

Gourlay received a bachelor's degree with First Class Honors from Edinburgh College of Art in Scotland and a master in fine arts in painting from Yale University School of Art. She's known for her exploration of the nuances of color and form in her abstract works.

"Looking at all of the outstanding work of students, it was hard to compare and choose winners," said Gourlay. "Knox students are great artists."

The show awards more than $3,000 in prizes to artists in 12 categories. Each first-place winner receives $250 and the winner of the Al Young Purchase award—where Knox purchases a student's piece to add to its collection—receives $500. Other place finishers received gift certificates to Blick Art Materials, which has its home office in Galesburg.

Ruth Holmes ‘18 said that the show is a "milestone" and it invites students to see how much they've grown as artists during their time at Knox.

"It's really good seeing the amount of work that we as an entire department are putting out," she said. "It gives us something to work towards every year. We want to produce something that represents us in a unique way."

The Al Young Art Exhibition is named after a 1969 Knox graduate and longtime teacher in Belleville, Illinois, who died in 1993. Young's sister, Ann A. Young ‘68, now supports the prizes. Several awards are named in honor of their parents, Albert G. Young and Anna Elisabeth Young. Additional awards are made possible by Beverly Bender '40 and Blick Art Materials. For 47 years, the Young family has continued support of this exhibit.