April King is a mural artist and painter; graphic design is not her forte.
But the North Augusta resident created the people’s choice award winning design for the inaugural Augusta Poster Show. About 225 people attended the VIP reception July 23 at the Wow! Club at SRP Park.
“In the 90s, I used to make silly things on Microsoft Paint,” she said.
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Using that same program, she created a design with icons of Augusta’s recent past including the giant skate that used to be in front of Stardust Skate Center, Fort Discovery, the Augusta Lynx hockey team and a Smile gas station.
Sometimes, people don’t create because they don’t have the latest program or the best supplies, but King said people shouldn’t worry about that.
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“Just create,” she said.
Carrie Brooks is another artist whose medium isn’t graphic design. A painter and art teacher at Lakeside High School, Brooks captured the skyline on Edgar’s Above Broad on canvas and submitted a photograph to make the posters.
“I am one of those perpetual cheerleaders. I love Augusta,” she said.
The city’s skyline often appears in her works, and she said she was thrilled to be part of the show.
Jason Craig, a graphic artist who organized the event, said he’d been talking about doing it for at least five years when his wife, Veronica, nudged him into action.
“Some incredibly talented people came out in support of this project,” he said.
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When he initially came up with the idea, he said there were a handful of artists he knew would support it, but he was blown away by 74 artists expressing an interest in the event. Only 30 artists were selected to participate.
Also at the reception, Craig named other winners. Three judges, Nancy Glaser from the Augusta Museum of History, Bennish Brown from the Augusta Convention and Visitors Bureau and Coco Rubio judged the event.
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Glaser’s judge’s awards went to two artists – Kyndall Cooper of Greenville, S.C., and Travis Knight of Chattanooga, Tenn.; Brown selected Dawn Cardona’s work; and Rubio chose Brian McGrath’s. The best in show went to Leonard Porkchop Zimmerman.
The exhibition continues from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. July 24. Admission is free, and the remaining posters are for sale. A few of them sold out before the end of the VIP event.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the Features Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com.
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