Governor and Mrs. Carcieri have selected “Beacon Rock” a watercolor by Richard Grosvenor of Newport, as the Best In Show for the third annual Scenes of Rhode Island competition. The Best In Show honor carries a $1,000 prize and the artwork will hang in the State House during the Carcieri Administration. It will also be reproduced as a high quality limited edition poster for the Carcieri’s use as a gift for non-profit organizations and visiting dignitaries. The competition is designed to highlight the beauties of Rhode Island and the abilities of the artists who live here.

Nearly 200 works of art were submitted from every corner of the state. Thirty-five of them were selected by a local curator, Ana Flores, and were displayed through January at the Atrium Gallery at One Capitol Hill, in the Department of Administration building.

Second place, and a $250 prize, goes to Donna Kenny Kirwan, of Rumford, for her watercolor titled “Slater Mill”. The third prize, and $100, goes to Cranston’s Margaret Gale for her watercolor titled “Chapel at Sockanosset”.

In addition, this year there will be a 2007 desk calendar produced for sale to feature the top three winners plus nine other entries. Calendar proceeds will benefit the Healing Arts Program at Lifespan Hospitals.

The featured artists for the calendar are Gail Armstrong of Warwick, and her watercolor “Daggert House, Slater Park”, Marjorie Ball of East Greenwich, and her oil painting “Sunny King Street”, Mary Jane Begin of Barrington and her mixed media work “P is for Providence”, Richard Harrington of Barrington, and his acrylic painting “Through the Marsh (Barrington)”, John Grosvenor of Newport and his watercolor “Ida Lewis Yacht Club”, Kate Huntington of Barrington, and her oil painting “Boys (Block Island)”, Michael Miller of Middletown and his photograph “Fort Adams State Park (Newport)”, Charles Pinning of Providence, and his photograph “Under Providence Place” and John Pitocco, of Chepatchet, and his photograph “Enjoying the Ocean at Beavertail.”

This is the third annual show organized as a cooperative effort by the Governor’s Office and the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, with the prizes provided by Governor and Mrs. Carcieri. [an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive]