Douglasville, Georgia – This year over one hundred artworks were submitted for potential inclusion in the 2026 National Juried Art Show (NJAS.) Three credentialled judges selected the final eighty artworks. First, Second, Third Place, and Honorable Mention prizes were decided by the judges before the exhibition opened and were presented on the night of the reception. The Art Guild also presented a Special Prize for an artwork that showed great technical proficiency. The final People’s Choice award could not be given at the exhibit opening because everyone had not had a chance to see all of the pieces. Visitors to the CAC voted for their favorite piece throughout the course of the exhibit, and on the last day the People’s Choice winner was determined through a careful counting of the votes.
This year, the winner of the People’s Choice award was University of West Georgia senior Hailey Jackson for her intricate, yet cozy, watercolor self-portrait “Tea Party.” Watercolor is a notoriously difficult medium with which to create detail, and Jackson’s piece almost appeared to be drawn with colored pencils given the clean lines and tiny objects she captured. Visitors to the exhibit were impressed by the details and enchanted by the subject matter.
Hailey was also the winner of this year’s Honorable Mention Prize and joined the other winners who collected their prizes on the night of the reception.
Chantelle Chapman won 1st Place for her gouache on paper painting “They’ll Tell You It’s Dangerous (Scarlet Kingsnake),” which displayed extreme proficiency with a difficult medium as well as emotional impact through its sensitive treatment of a misunderstood species. Lindy Blosser won second place for her impressive technical use of soft pastels in her piece “The Aftermath.” Third place went to another beautifully detailed pastel work “Murmuration Migration” by seventeen-year-old artist Alexandra Huynh. Finally, local stained glass artist Dana Helton received the DCAG Special Prize. Her 8×10 stained glass still life of pears entitled “A Pair of Pears” stood out in its unique and beautiful application of stained-glass techniques.
Competitive exhibits always make for the most exciting receptions, and we have another one coming up in October and November. Mark your calendar now to attend the free “Local Lenses” Members Photography Exhibit reception and award ceremony on Thursday, November 5 from 6-8 pm at the CAC, and stop by any time before November 20th for a free, self-guided tour of the exhibition. The Cultural Arts Council Douglasville/ Douglas County, located at 8652 Campbellton Street in historic downtown Douglasville, Georgia, is open Mondays through Fridays, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. For directions or more information, visit www.artsdouglas.org.
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The mission of the Cultural Arts Council of Douglasville/Douglas County is to nurture, guide and stimulate the enjoyment of and participation in the arts among Douglas County residents by providing an atmosphere conducive to the arts, broadening the spectrum of quality exhibits and performances available to the community, and fostering individual interactions with the arts through a wide range of satellite groups. The programs and activities of the Cultural Arts Council are supported in part by the City of Douglasville and the Douglas County Board of Commissioners.