THE MYSTERY OF JUDGING

The Mystery of Judging (A Blog by Mike Barr)

There’s no doubt about it…..the process and decisions of art judging are a mystery and often very controversial.  From the biggest competitions to the smallest, there’s always a disagreement  - often unspoken – about the winner.

One of the issues is the selection of the judges. Panels are commonplace, often to counteract any perceived bias of an individual judge.  But the mix of the panel can produce its own problems. A judge with traditional roots, together with one who can only see worth in the contemporary along with a local identity who knows nothing about art (except what they like) can be a problematic combination. If you’ve been around the local art scene for a while you’ll know what I mean. Organisers are no doubt well-meaning but it doesn’t always work.

I don’t think there are many artists who can’t remember some awful results at an award night – it’s just how things are sometimes. 

I personally favour a one-judge show with judges who are painters themselves and have years of experience and reputation behind them.  More often they will have a good appreciation of all forms of painting, which is important.

Accountability
One of the best ways to try to prevent an outrageous result is to insist that the judge or judges publicly give reasons for their choices. This helps everyone. It shows some accountability and effort in the judging process. And it helps artists understand what judges are looking for.

I said “yes” to being a judge several years ago. I felt the need to put things right in some respects, at least in my eyes.
And recently I had the honour of judging the Art Muse online contest,  an award  that I had won several times myself.
A lot of the works in the Master Class section were incredible and I thought the choice was going to be difficult. That was until I saw Rick Delanty’s ‘Moonrise, Southern Hemisphere’. It dragged me in to its atmosphere and Iwas captive to it. This is what I wrote about this winning work.

“I’m always on the lookout for paintings I can feel and this one hit me straight away.
Making low-light paintings work is not easy and this is the best of Rick’s nocturnes – I’d be very happy with this on my wall.
Even in this light Rick has created an eerie depth that draws you in. Welcoming lights in the foreground echo the subdued rendition of the moon. The hazy stars fit in nicely without making a fuss and in fact nothing is making a fuss in the painting, including Mr Detail. It’s like walking into a majestic night-time holiday. “

Congratulations Rick.

Mike Barr,