Artists were told to connect with their work. Some connected with their dreams, or with a loved one. Some connected a song with their feelings, or a dance with their aspirations. All of them connected with each other Friday night, when they saw each other’s work.
At the 15th annual Community Arts Challenge, 83 artists contributed more than 100 entries interpreting the theme “Connect.” The theme stems from it being the 25th anniversary of Cortland Arts Connect in 2025.
Karen Dillon, a first-time entrant, won the Irvan Beale Memorial Award for her textile piece “Threads.” It represents her connection to her family, she said.
“In my life, I had many people teach me to sew, crochet, embroider, that sort of thing – including grandmothers and great aunts,” Dillion said. “I took pieces from their collection that I now own and used them in the piece. The idea is that these threads bloom into other things.”
Karen Foresti Hempson, a first-time entrant, won in the writing category for her piece
“The Perfect Crime.” She decided to do an Ekphrastic story – where she wrote a fictional story about a painting she saw.
Ashley Bobbett’s piece “Set From a Dream” was an honorable mention in artisan crafts. The piece shows a connection she has with her dreams – she often dreams of her old neighborhood in Baldswinsville.
“This whole image is from out the window, just watching the bus pass when you stay home sick from school,” Bobbett said. “This image just stuck in my head. I just captured everything the way I envisioned it, and that’s what I love about it. I really got the whole tone of it.”
“I love this event,” said Ty Marshal, executive director of the Center for the Arts of Homer. “I love that we can come together around creativity and arts and culture in the dead of winter. We can celebrate us.”
Megan Perioli won in choreography for her piece “Hold Yourself,” where she connected herself with a sense of calm. Victoria Congdon also won in that category for “Crossing Over,” which represented choosing an interesting path in life.
Denise Knight painted a cat and a dog cuddling. She loved the idea of an inter-species connection, she said.
Genevieve Geer, a Marathon-based glass artist, won in Fine Arts for her piece “L’hypotheque,” a glass orb with a house tucked inside.
“It’s about a connection to home, how every human being on the planet seeks some form of a home,” Geer said.
“You just see so many unique pieces,” Bobbett said. “That’s the best part of doing the show – seeing what people come up with. You try and guess what you may see, and then you see other things that never even came to mind.”
“I think it’s really interesting to work with a theme, and then to have such a wonderful connection to the community,” Dillon said. “It makes this little town quite a vibrant place.”
