First Place: Kathleen Zeranski

Second Place: Devin Bertsch

Third Place: Emily Alyse Weldon

In addition to awarding cash prizes, The Painter’s Journal is publishing a selection of the work of the winners of this contest below and in the Spring Issue of the magazine.

This award was established last year to recognize the accomplishments of young theatre artists and to encourage their pursuit of a career in scenic art. We are happy to see that there has been a continued strong interest in the award this year. Our panel of three judges once again had the pleasant challenge of choosing the winners from among the many talented applicants. The competition is open to all college students pursuing an undergraduate degree at the time of application. Applicants were required to submit a portfolio of 8 photographs of their work, either from actual productions or class projects, with a description of their work on the project and the process they used. In addition, they were required to submit a resume, a brief bio, and two letters of recommendation.

Once again we want to express our deepest gratitude to our judges, Tim Jozwick, Cristina Todesco, and Tricia Green, for their time and careful consideration in reviewing all the applications. Without them this contest would not have been possible.

And last but not least, we want to thank all our student applicants! Once again it was very exciting and rewarding for us to see so much fine work being done by up-and-coming young scenic artists across the country. To each of you we extend our best wishes for continued success in your college careers, and on into your professional lives, wherever they may take you.      

First Place: Kathleen Zeranski
Kathleen Zeranski grew up in Meriden, Connecticut and has aspired from a young age to obtain a career in the arts. At the College of Saint Rose in Albany, NY she studied painting and art history, and after a summer internship at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, CT, she decided to seriously pursue a career in scenic painting. She looks forward to interning at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, MA next year.

Set for The Birthday Party, designed by Eric Beninghausen, painted by Kathleen Zeranski, produced by Boston University

Second Place: Devin Bertsch
Devin Bertsch is a senior Theater major at Santa Clara University. With an emphasis in scenic design he has worked for 3 years in the shop as a carpenter and as a painter. In addition, he has designed 2 full-scale productions in his 3 years in the department, as well as having worked for a handful of companies in the surrounding Bay Area as both painter and designer. In order to fully understand design, he has been the lead painter on every show he has designed.

Set for Execution of Justice, designed by Devin Bertsch, painted by Devin Bertsch,  produced by Santa Clara University

Third Place: Emily Alyse Weldon
Theatre has been Emily Alyse Weldon’s lifelong passion and she has been involved in one aspect of theatre or another since she was five years old. She discovered her talent and love for scenic artistry during her time on the paint crew in the spring semester of her freshman year at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Her gift was quickly recognized and she was hired as a Charge Artist in the fall of 2008. She now proudly calls herself a Scenic Artist.

Set for King John, designed by Fereshteh Rostampour, painted by Emily Alyse Weldon, produced by University of North Carolina-Wilmington

To see last years winners click here!