A Maine-based art contest, #MaineReunited, is seeking submissions from Oxford County artists and creatives on themes of healthy and caring communities.
Lights Out, a design and marketing business based in Norway, launched #MaineReunited last year in Oxford County. Since then the contest went to Aroostook and Washington counties, and is now back for a second time in Oxford County, according to a news release from Daniel Sipe, executive director of Lights Out.
The contest is open to new and established artists as well as children. Sipe said that opening the contest to adults and children can allow for broader conversations about how they experience community and why it’s so important. “Both adults and children felt the same division of community during the pandemic. Art can be a way for parents to talk with their children about why community matters,” Sipe said.
“We hope this gives people a creative way to express what community means to them and to reflect on how the pandemic has affected that,” said Helen Lukacs, director of special projects for Lights Out.
The contest winners will be awarded $1,000 prizes to three winners: an Adult Award, a Youth Award, and a People’s Choice Award. All submissions will be featured on Lights Out’s social media pages, and many of the submissions will be featured in a community art show and celebration at the end of the contest.
The deadline for submissions is Friday, Nov. 25.
Contest organizers plans to announce all three winners by early December, and to host a celebration of the award winners in mid-December, with the exact time and location to be determined. The business also plans to have a vaccine clinic on site. A full list of contest guidelines can be found online at lightsoutart.com/mainereunited.
For questions and concerns about vaccination, and for information on where to get a vaccine, call 211.
Lights Out works to expand creative communities and to encourage conversation, collaboration, and an egalitarian arts experience. Lights Out Art Gallery produces online features of Maine artists, both new and established and hosts seasonal pop-up gallery shows. The business also recently purchased a building at 10 Tannery St. in Norway, which it is renovating to be an arts community center.
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