When people had to line up to enter our gallery for the opening reception of the Third National Exhibition (August 2-30, 2009) - and could hardly move once they got in! -- we knew that months of hard work had paid off.

The Exhibition attracted 730 wonderful entries in a wide variety of media from 258 artists in 19 states. Juror Scott Shields, the chief curator of the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, ultimately selected 110 works by 81 artists (including 10 MSA members) from 11 states. Early on the day of the opening reception, Dr. Shields had arrived at the gallery to view the art in place and make his decisions on prize-winners. This news was held under wraps until after Dr. Shields had given a brief talk about the beautiful and diverse show, thus adding to the excitement of the 250-plus artists, MSA members, friends and family gathered in our gallery.

Prizes were awarded as follows: First ($750) to Victoria Goro-Rapaport of Kearney, NE, for her print "Mephisto's Feast" - Second ($500) to Deborah Hamon of Novato for her digital C-print "Sandtrap" - Third ($250) to Alice Beall of Marshall for her embroidery "A&R #2." Eight Honorable Mentions (merchandise awards) were also presented.

When the Board decided that MSA would undertake a National Exhibition in 2009 (the last one had been in 2006), the opportunity presented itself to do everything in a new way. With an eye towards the still-present economic challenges facing us as an organization and as individuals, our focus was on being simple, cost-effective and environmentally-conscious. For example, the prospectus was designed and distributed over the Internet - all of the entries were submitted digitally - all of the communication with the artists took place via e-mail. (No paper! No postage!)

As everyone who enjoyed the reception and visited the show can attest, many thanks are due to all the talented, generous and dedicated individuals on our committees - Receiving, Hanging, Crafts, Lighting, Signage, Maintenance, Hospitality, Publicity, Advisory Council and Office Staff.