Southbury Senior Living Community Preps for Elaborate Senior Art Show

Southbury, Conn. – Preparations for The Connecticut Senior Juried Art Show at Pomperaug Woods are fully underway, with 223 pieces of art arriving at the retirement community this week. The artwork includes paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures submitted by 144 seniors from 53 towns across Connecticut.

Between August 15 and 18, a panel of four judges will have the daunting task of narrowing the large selection of artwork down to a few select winners. The judges will scrutinize each piece for originality, skill, technique and composition.

Zufar Bikbov, a professional painter who’s been a judge since the show’s inception in 2007, said the biggest challenge for the judging panel is finding the right balance between being subjective and objective about the artwork.

“There are a lot of very high-quality pieces,” Bikbov said. “It also depends on how the other judges are feeling about it, and we discuss that for a very long time.”

The rest of the judging panel includes Michelle Murelli, an art therapist at the Wellspring Foundation, David Merrill, a Southbury painter and Medal of Merit recipient, and John Rohlfing, a professor of art at Post University in Waterbury, Conn.

Lisa Huebenthal, director of community life services at Pomperaug Woods, said the event’s popularity stems from its uniqueness as the only Connecticut art show that caters solely to older adults.

“Every year, there’s a lot of excitement from seniors from all over the state,” said Huebenthal. “We get a full spectrum of artists interested in the show, from amateurs who recently picked up art as a hobby to seasoned pros.”

Jeffrey Sells, last year’s winner of the Tommie Davis Award, or “Best in Show,” for his acrylic painting Silver Sands, said that he was surprised by the recognition due to the quality of artwork submitted by others.

“I was thrilled and definitely didn’t expect it,” Sells said. “It’s nice to win recognition, especially for something you enjoy doing. My family was there and we really enjoyed it.”

Artwork will be publicly exhibited at Pomperaug Woods, located at 80 Heritage Road in Southbury, on September 24 and 25. Winning pieces will be displayed at Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury, from October 2 to November 6.