Local Citizens honored at July 20 Photo Contest Reception

Pictured in Photo from Left to Right: Sementha Mathews, Executive Director of the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, Russ Henry, Partner at Coleman Talley LLP, Nicholai Courtenay, First Place Winner and Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson

Valdosta Mayor Scott Matheson and Coleman Talley representative Russ Henry announced the winners of the 12th Annual Valdosta People’s Choice Photo Contest at an Awards Reception at the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, on Monday, July 20.

For the past month, citizens have voted for their favorite contest photos, which are currently on display in the Art Center’s Tillman Gallery.

This year’s winners are:

 First Place: Nicholai Courtenay, Heavenly Glow

Second Place: Rena Taylor, Where Did He Go?

Third Place: Kalyn Wilson, Facing Our Future Together

 Honorable Mentions:

Tawanna Southall, Lace Face

Marvin Smith, Redhead

Michael Chapman, Splash of Color

Sara Halbert, Sunset Through the Pines

Nicholai Courtenay, Nature’s Beauty

 Youth Winner: Brooke Felkel, Observant Owl

Youth Honorable Mention:

Stella Cofield, South Georgia Snow

A $300 cash prize was awarded for first place, $200 cash prize for second place, and a $100 cash prize for third place from among the adult-submitted entries. Five honorable mentions were also selected.

The public also voted on the first-place youth photo (ages 16 and under) and one honorable mention. The youth first-place winner received a $100 cash award.

The photographs will remain on display in the Tillman Gallery through Wednesday, July 29, at which time they will become part of a traveling display that can be viewed from August until December 2020 in various communities. Photo contest participants may pick up their works from the Turner Center on Thursday, July 30 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. or from the Public Information Office at City Hall beginning Friday, July 31, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The partnership between the City of Valdosta and the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, co-organizers of the Photo Contest, recognizes the importance of the arts as a quality of life, civic engagement and economic development tool in the community.

For more information, call the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts at (229) 247-2787 or the City’s Public Information Office at (229) 259-3548.

  • Share