Give it a Shot

As part of Snapshot, we put together a couple of interactive projects to get visitors thinking about and experimenting with documenting the world around them through a creative lens like the artists in the exhibition. We’ve shared the results of our Home Movie Contest here on the blog.

Now it’s time to share the results of a second contest–Give it a Shot–which challenged participants to snap a photo inspired by one of the paintings in the exhibition and upload it for a chance to win a Nikon 1 camera. After receiving nearly 100 submissions  (which you can peruse on Flickr) before the exhibition closed May 6, we drew a winner at random. The Nikon 1 is en route to Caroline Olsen of Chevy Chase, and you can check out her photo and its inspiration below. Washingtonian has put together this slideshow of some of the submissions which its editors found most original and compelling.

(left) Maurice Denis, Noële and Her Mother, 1896. Oil on canvas, 13 1/8 x 15 1/2 in. Private collection. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris. (right) Caroline Olsen's photo, inspired by the Denis

(left) Maurice Denis, Noële and Her Mother, 1896. Oil on canvas, 13 1/8 x 15 1/2 in. Private collection. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris. (right) Caroline Olsen's photo, inspired by the Denis painting

 

 

 

3 thoughts on “Give it a Shot

  1. I loved this contest. How wonderful to see so many surprising and delightful connections between personal photos and the paintings you selected! Even after Snapshot, perhaps you could keep it going on occasion, with other works from your collection? Many thanks for the fun and inspiration!

  2. Thanks, Maureen!

    And thanks, Libby, for your feedback and interest! We’re definitely inspired by the contest, as well, and have heard about other exciting museum projects in which audiences are invited to create artwork or snap photos in response to work in collections or exhibitions. For example, Nashville’s Frist Center for the Visual Arts recently closed a contest called “To See As Artists See the Frist” calling for artwork inspired by its collection and a special exhibition of American art from the Phillips! Learn more here: http://fristcenter.org/submit-a-work

    We will be sure to post news of any future projects along these lines on this blog.

    Cecilia Wichmann
    Publicity and Marketing Manager

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