Sandi Whetzel's Art Wins Wine Label Competion: Art Pour Favor Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Recently DIVA, Downtown Initiative for Visual Arts in Eugene, OR, issued a call for artists to design a wine label for their first juried Art Pour Favor wine label competition. I thought one of my acrylic wine paintings just might be a good fit. Boy was I was excited when I learned that my Wine on the Vine II won the competition for the Cabernet Sauvignon label. It captures the essence of a sun drenched vineyard with engaging shapes of vines and bottled grapes.

My winning label appears on a special bottling of a 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon wine from the Desert Wind Winery in Washington's Yakima Valley. The wine is being featured at the DIVA Center's receptions and fund raising events in 2009. I and the winner of the Pinot Gris label were honored during a wine bottling party at the RainsSong Winery in Cheshire, OR, Feb 14th.

This is the second time my Wine on the Vine II painting has received reccgnition. It was favorably reviewed in Coos Bay's The World while the painting was exhibited at the Coos Art Museum in October 2008. Nor is this the first time my art has been used to promote the wine industry. My Uplifting Spirits painting was the promotion poster for the 2006 Greatest of the Grape and my first Wine on the Vine in shades of blue promoted the 2005 Umpqua Valley Art and Wine Festival. My appreciation for wine is growing.

The WORLD, Coos Bay, OR: Art news columnist reviews Coos Art Museum CAM Biennial--323 reasons to vote for people's choice

Wine on the Vine III 24x20 ©Sandi Whetzel

I'm so delighted to report that my art at the Coos Art Museum, CAM Biennial, has received a very favorable review in the Friday, Oct. 31st edition of The World, Coos Bay, Oregon's local newspaper. From 323 art entries/reasons to vote for the People's Choice, Teri Albert, columnist for the newspaper described two of three of my works displayed at the CAM Biennial:

"Brilliant hues and a light touch with her subject bring Sandi Whetzel’s Wine on the Vine paintings to a place near the top of my list. She combines acrylic with a co-polymer pour to fashion transparent, glass-like textures on her paintings. The fiery palette of Wine on the Vine II fairly pops from the museum wall, while Wine on the Vine III sports a cascade of plump grapes, tumbling into a beautifully rendered goblet. No wonder that Whetzel’s work has been used to promote the wine industry of the Umpqua Valley. To this imaginative artist I say, cheers!"

And on top of that, one of my wine paintings, Wine on the Vine III, I think, is also pictured in the actual newspaper, I'm told. I'm getting my hands on that newspaper issue ASAP. I was mildly hopeful about winning the People's Choice Award before this, but now I'm really hopeful.

Teri started her review by piquing readers' interest in voting for their favorite art works to determine which lucky favorited artist will receive a SOLO EXHIBIT at the CAM in 2009. She also commented on the work of two other artists. You can read all of Teri's reviews of the CAM Biennial by clicking HERE.