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Danielle Tickell with her best in show piece at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Paveen Beer Chunhaswasdikul with his award-winning piece at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Booth of artist Abigail West at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Artist Deborah O'Keeffe in her booth at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Customers browse at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Live music at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Painter Ahmad Austin displays work at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Chelsea Bird wins Bluff Park Art Association Board of Directors Award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Mark Harris wins Hugh Dye Memorial best new artist award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Paveen Beer Chunhaswasdikul wins Sara Perry Memorial award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Brittany Coror Moore wins August A. and Cary Moore Memorial Award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Ahmad Austin wins BPAA award in honor of the show judge, Rod Bigelow at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Danielle Tickell wins best in show and BPAA Permanent Collection Purchase at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Award Winners at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Customers shop at Becky Bolton ceramics booth at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Evelyn Canne Ceramics booth at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Gyl Turner paintings displayed at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Artist Danielle Tickell at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Jayne Morgan's art booth at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Jayne Morgan's artist statement displayed at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Bill Bowen wins BPAA President's Award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Hoover Arts Alliance Award goes to Steve Carmichael at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Sundi Hawking wins Bluff Park Art Association Board of Directors Award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Michelle Prahler wins Henley Hager Award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Pumpkin ceramics by artist Margaret Barber at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Candle Holder by Woodturning by Herbster at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Creature Collective Booth at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Street photography displayed at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Customers browse Mark's Artisan Woodcrafts at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Janna Phillips shows artwork at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Vicki Grossman Wyrick shows paintings at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Bowen Ceramics booth at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Bowen ceramics with President's Award at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Artist Tracie Johnston with her work at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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Customer smiles in front of Gary Curtis's paintings at Bluff Park Art Show in Hoover on October 5, 2024. Photo by Savannah Schmidt.
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People’s Choice award winner Hannah Lewis at Bluff Park Art Show on October 5, 2024. Submitted photo.
An art teacher from McAdory High School won Best of Show at the 2024 Bluff Park Art Show on Saturday.
Danielle Tickell, who has taught art at McAdory for five years, captured top honors with a painting that is designed to show the connections between families and houses. It shows two large veins like those that pump blood into the heart feeding into the base of a two-story house much like a root structure.
The house has some imperfections, much like families do, Tickell said.
“A home is not perfect, and the people that are in it are not perfect, but it’s those people that kind of make up the life of that family,” she said. “There are a lot of dings and dents, and a lot of things fall apart on a regular basis, like it does with our family also, but I love it.”
The judge for the art show loved Tickell’s work.
“I don’t know a ton about her or the work, but just seeing it visually was an incredible thing,” said Rod Bigelow, the executive director and chief diversity and inclusion officer for the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas. “It just pops off the canvas. It’s gorgeous. She’s a very technically astute painter, so it’s really great.”
Tickell was one of about 120 artists chosen for this year’s show. A significant number were from Alabama, but others accepted into this year’s show came from Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Mississippi, Virginia, Indiana, Texas, Kentucky and Rhode Island.
Thousands of people flooded into Bluff Park Community Park for the 61st year of the show, which is put on by the Bluff Park Art Association. The show ran from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and made it through the day with sunshine and no rain.
Visitors wandered through the park, browsing the artists’ tents as live music was played by James Quackenbush and Alice Bargeron. A kids’ art corner managed by Girl Scouts gave children a chance to make their own creations.
Show goers also had a chance to partake of food and drinks from G.R.’s Smokehouse, Chicks N Doughnuts, Birmingham Wings & Waffles, Alabama Peanut Co., Cookie Fix, Kona Ice and Travelin Tom’s Coffee.
Bluff Park residents Jim and Darcy Terry were among the crowd and said they always love it when they’re able to come to the show. “There’s just so many cool things,” Darcy Terry said.
They don’t necessarily come to see a particular artist; they mostly like to browse and see what they can find each year, Jim Terry said.
This year, they left with a painting by Juanita Weldon of Tyrone, Georgia, a wool cover-up by Loretta Brown of Silverhill and three paintings of gummy bears by Katie Adams of Birmingham. They bought the gummy bear paintings for some of their younger grandchildren who love Black Forest gummy bears.
Tickell won $2,500 for producing the best in show winning entry, but a total of $10,800 was given out in prize money this year. Here’s a complete list of winners:
- Best of Show ($2,500) — Danielle Tickell, Hueytown, 2D/3D mixed media
- Show Judge Award ($1,800) — Ahmad Austin, Alabaster, painting
- Bluff Park Art Association President’s Award ($1,000) — Bill Bowen, Charleston, Indiana, ceramics
- August A. and Cary Moore Memorial Award ($1,000) — Brittany Carol Moore, Birmingham, photography/digital
- Sara Perry Memorial Award ($1,000) — Paveen Beer Chunhaswasdikul, Gadsden, ceramics
- Hugh Dye Memorial Award for best new artist ($1,000) — Mark Harris, Anniston, woodworking
- Bluff Park Art Association Board of Directors Award ($500) — Chelsea Bird, Pawtucket, Rhode Island, jewelry
- Bluff Park Art Association Board of Directors Award ($500) ‚ Sundi Hawkins, Pell City, painting
- Hoover Arts Alliance Award ($500) — Steve Carmichael, Riverside, painting
- Henly Hager Award ($500) — Michelle Prahler, Decatur, Georgia, 2D/3D mixed media
- People’s Choice Award ($500) — Hannah Lewis, Montevallo, printmaking
