Several students took home awards on Friday evening during the reception for the Annual Student Awards Show.

The reception, held in the Robert Else Gallery in Kadema Hall, recognized Sacramento State students for their artistic talents.

The reception gathered a large crowd including students, friends, family and faculty. This year 34 students submitted their work in the show and 47 pieces are on display.

Dan Frye, chair of the art department, opened the reception with a welcoming speech and introduced the crowd to the Annual Awards Show and its history at Sac State.

Photography professor Roger Vail, who has taught at Sac State for 38 years, gave a special tribute to Ricardo Favela, former associate professor at Sac State who passed away in July 2007.

Favela was one of the founders of Royal Chicano Air Force, an artist/activist group which started 35 years ago on the CSUS campus and was dedicated as an expressive outlet for the Chicano, Mexicano and Indio communities. Deeply rooted in the arts department at Sac State, Favela also helped mentor many of the art students, including some whose work is on display in the Else Gallery.

Robert Else was also acknowledged at the reception for his contribution to the Art Department. Else, a former art professor at Sac State and chair of the Art department, died last month.

This year’s show was judged by three local high school teachers: Allison Stiles, Jeffrey Carter and Annie Murphy Robinson. The three judges who chose the winners for this year’s awards show did not attend the reception, but wrote a letter that was read by Frye regarding this year’s show.

“Making art is a personal thing?and putting it out there is difficult,” Frye read from the letter.

“Our goal was to judge the work based on three factors: technical ability, aesthetics and concept.”

Judging for the show lasted five hours before the winners were decided.

The dean of the College of Arts, Jeffrey Mason, announced the winners at the reception. There were several categories of awards, including undergraduate and graduate certificate awards, the R.W. Witt Scholarship award and, new this year, the University Art Product Award.

The University Art Product Award was provided by the University Arts, an arts and crafts supply store located on Marconi Avenue. Bob Fisher, an executive at University Arts, was present at the reception to announce the winners of the University Art Product Award.

According to Frye, Fisher contacted the art department on behalf of University Arts and wanted to be a part of awards show.

“They (University Arts) are trying to make a connection with the community,” Frye said.

Frye also noted that the University Art Product Award will be a permanent part of the Annual Student Awards Show.

Megan Scott was one of the four winners of the University Art Product Award for her piece “Untitled II” in the category of mixed media.

“I’m super excited about it,” Scott said. “When you get recognized for your work, it makes you feel like you’re doing something.”

Scott took two weeks to complete her piece. Scott’s mother, Beth Scott, was also present at the reception and when asked had only one thing to say about her daughter: “I’m just so proud, proud, proud, proud.”

Steven J. Miller, Erika Harm and Christopher Blackwood were the other three recipients of the University Art Product Award.

Manuel Rios, graduate student in the art department, received two certificates for his pieces “American Pride” and “For What It’s Worth.” Rios was among those students who submitted multiple pieces into the show and wasn’t sure what to expect from the reception.

“You always doubt yourself,” said Rios, who also said he felt relief when his name was announced.

This year’s group of pieces submitted expressed a variety of art mediums including photography, new media including electronics as well as painting, drawing and sculpture. The diverse group of pieces in the show was a big topic of conversation at the reception.

“The quality is going up more and more each year and has a lot to do with the new studio faculty,” Professor Vail said. “It shows through the quality of the show.”

Other winners included Eli Trujillo, Jennifer Darr, Pam Dempsey, George Ettenheim, Kyle Larson, Sally Worthing, Marjorie Darrow, Manuel Rios, Livia Moe, David Johnson, Lin Wilson, Matt Cutshall, Erika Harm, Megan Scott, Steven J. Miller and Christopher Blackwood.

Isela Reyes can be reached at [email protected].