The Judge's Perspective: One Person's Opinion on One Day

It's one person's opinion on one day.

It's something I've repeatedly said to my kids ... and anyone else who would listen. When you are being judged - whether that's during a 4-H fair or a music contest - your rating is at least somewhat dependent on one person's opinion on that particular day.

I served as the judge for the Photography Contest during the Kansas 4-H Wheat Expo on August 4. I believe in the 4-H program, of course, which won't come as a surprise to anyone who is a regular reader. 

But my saying "yes," probably was just as much about not turning down our county agent, Amy. This was the last event of her tenure in Stafford County/21 Central Extension. (We will miss her after she's been a part of us since 2005!)

I told her that I haven't received any of the specialized training for 4-H judges. My training has been more "boots on the ground" - or more accurately, "tennies in the dirt" as I've photographed our Kansas farm through the years. I also volunteered as a 4-H photography project leader back when Brent was involved in 4-H. And, as I've said before, I probably learned more than any of the 4-Hers I escorted to local photo shoots, garden shows, 4-H workshops and other field trips. 

I've decided I'd rather be on the receiving end of that old adage than on the "judging" end of it. 

Jennifer, one of my fellow competitors in the open class photography division at the Stafford County Fair, was also at the Wheat Expo, serving as a tour guide. We've often stood in the hot exhibit building at the Stafford County Fair and contemplated why this photo placed over that. She has heard my "one person's opinion on one day" almost as much as my kids, I suppose.

And, before she left to lead her tour groups to Stafford County farms, I told her I wasn't sure how I felt about being that one opinion.

As my family knows, I'm not the fastest decision maker. (I like to make the RIGHT decision. And when there's not necessarily a RIGHT decision, it can be a struggle.) 

But I got the job done. There was at least one person happy with my class placements that day. And I figure a lot of the others were happy with their purple or blue ribbons, too. Maybe those to whom I gave a red ribbon weren't as happy.

But on everyone's entries, I tried to write comments about how I would improve the photo. 

The photo I chose as the winner used what I called "Hobby Lobby" wheat in my comments. As a Kansas wheat producer, I would have preferred the wheat come out of a Kansas harvest field, especially for a Kansas Wheat Expo competition. However, there was no stipulation in the rules, and it was - in my opinion on that one day - the best composition. And, some farmer somewhere grew that wheat and marketed it to craft stores. (Good for them!)

Anyway, Jennifer let me know later that she'd visited with the young photographer, who was amazed that the judge knew that she'd used wheat from Hobby Lobby. That made me laugh. Yes, that long-bearded wheat looks a lot different from what I've seen for 60-plus years in Kansas fields. 

The photo contest wasn't the only contest. Another judge got to sample a table full of baked goods - celebrating Kansas wheat's journey into flour. Randy thought that would have been the thing to judge, since he might have gotten to taste, too. (Randy couldn't complain too much. They served cinnamon rolls as the 4-Hers and families were gathering.)

Another judge evaluated wheat samples in quart jars. Still another judged posters and displays, a couple of which involved a lot of time and legwork in raising and evaluating crop conditions themselves.

While I was back at the Stafford County annex agonizing over my decisions, the 4-Hers and their families toured three different operations. They went to Stafford County Flour Mill, the home of Hudson Cream Flour (the best flour around).

Tour photos by Danielle Kasper, used with permission

They also toured Spare Produce, which markets their produce primarily at farmers' markets, and with a farm owned by Jill Stimatze, who grows 30 acres of pumpkins, 10 acres of watermelon and 10 acres of cantaloupe, most of which are marketed to grocery chains.

Photo by Danielle Kasper, used with permission

 

We didn't stick around to hear the verdicts from those who may have disagreed with "one person's opinion on one day." No matter what, I know events like the expo help "make the best better" as 4-Hers learn more and make new friends.

From Camera Click to Museum Wall

It started with a camera click on the way to a pasture on a September afternoon and ended up on the wall of an art museum.

 

As an amateur photographer, I am honored that one of my photos was chosen by Artist Charles Baughman for an exhibit at the Vernon Filley Art Museum in Pratt. I am certainly not alone: 23 other photographers also had images chosen by Baughman. He recreated the photographs as paintings in his signature style, which he calls Splatterscape. He uses only his fingers, sticks and oil paint to produce abstract works. In the exhibition at the Filley Museum, his paintings hang side-by-side with the original photographs they are based upon.

From the Vernon Filley Art Museum Facebook page (You can see Baughman's rendition of my photo at the fair right.)

 

 

 

 

Earlier in the year, the museum advertised the opportunity for photographers to submit up to three photographs to be considered. (Thanks to my friend, Nancy, for bringing it to my attention.) The artist didn't want photos with animals, people or structures. It's tough to try and second-guess what might appeal to another person. I submitted three photos and just hoped for the best.

But I was really excited when I received notification that one of my photos was chosen. Baughman chose my photo of Maximillian sunflowers with a windmill in the background, though he opted to leave out the windmill in the finished painting. Those late-season sunflowers lined the road to the Rattlesnake Pasture. On a September day in 2018 when the sunflowers seemed to rival the sun, I stopped and took a few photos. I used the photo on my blog, of course, and it decorates my own mantel during sunflower season.

Last Friday, photographers were invited to be there with the artist for the opening reception. But the exhibit will be in place until July 22, so, if you're in the area, there's plenty of time to see it. 

Photo from www.pratttribune.com

Charles Baughman is a nationally known, contemporary Abstract Expressionist painter, as well as a long-time art educator. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Studio Arts and Art History from Kearney (Neb.) State College and his Master of Fine Arts in Painting/Sculpture from Wichita State University. Since 2004, Baughman has owned and operated the Monart School of Art and The Art Park in Wichita with his wife, Kate Pepper.

"I'm happy to say that I'm a professional finger painter," Baughman said, generating a laugh among the crowd. "I'm open to happy accidents, which lead the viewer's eye on a journey." 

 A time-lapse video showed the process Baughman used to use paint interpret the photographs into paintings. This snippet features my photo.

Baughman told reception attendees that his  style of painting brings him closer to nature and celebrates all stages and seasons.

""Nature has a continuous process of destruction and rebirth," Baughman said in his artist statement. "Nature's rebirth often happens in unexpected ways - big events like earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes and fire. This destruction is always followed by new life - fresh, yet subtle, growth starts among grasses, trees and undergrowth first. Then, as the seasons cycle through, more and more regeneration happens. ... The spirit of life happens with the willingness to destroy and re-create something new."

With the Ninnescah Landscapes exhibit, he wasn't trying to replicate the photography. The cell phones in everyone's pocket make it possible to capture moments easily. He wanted to interpret the photos in a new and interesting way. And with his paintings he wants to remind people that nature is powerful, yet its beauty is also fragile.

That message definitely resonates with me, someone who often captures the fleeting moments of beauty that exist all around me in my everyday life.  

The artist statement I submitted with my photographs was this (in part):

The Kansas plains have always provided a backdrop for my life. Those scenes may not garner the same praise as towering mountains or waves hitting a seashore. In fact, Kansas is known as a “flyover state.” But these simple scenes are just as beautiful in a different way.

I’ve always enjoyed photography. As a fifth grader on a family trip to California, I took dozens of black and white photos of the Tournament of Roses parade. It became a bit of a family joke – dozens of black and white photos of scenes that were bursting with color! But that first experience of viewing the world through my very own camera lens served as a catalyst to a lifelong hobby....

Taking photos helps me pay attention. It helps me to see beauty in ordinary things. I look for beauty in my everyday life. And when you look for beauty, you often find it. 

Kim Fritzemeier Artist Statement

Baughman has been an instructor at the Wichita Art Museum, Wichita State University, Cowley County Community College, Butler County Community College, Wichita Center for the Arts, and Friends University. He has developed and taught classes ranging from Art Appreciation and Figurative Sculpture to advanced drawing courses and painting. 

Baughman doesn't believe in signing his name in the lower righthand corner of his work. Instead, he embeds a heart-shaped rock in the paint, and he signs the side of the work.

My photo and Baughman's rendition are also featured on the banner advertising the show outside the Filley. It was an additional thrill to see that!

 

This isn't my first time to have my photos on walls other than my own or my family's. Some of my work is also featured at the Kansas State University College of Business and K-State's Staley School of Leadership Studies.

But it's no less an honor. 

And the pair was sold the first night! That was a thrill, too!

Again, the exhibit will be on display at the Vernon Filley Art Museum in Pratt until July 22. Check it out!