The 36th Annual Central Region Juried Art Exhibit opens on April 27th here in Portage la Prairie. Portage District Arts Centre marketing and events coordinator Lee Beaton says the deadline for submissions by artists is this week.

"March 31st is the deadline for artists in the central region to submit their application, their artist statement, and their fee for the central Region Juried Art Exhibition that is being hosted here at Portage la Prairie," she explains.

Beaton notes you can mail in the material so long as it's postmarked for the 31st. She adds everyone's excited to see the artists and their works all together in the main gallery and hear everyone's comments.

When the reception opens on the 27th, the gallery opens for the artists at 6:00 p.m. to meet with the jurors and discuss their works. At 7:00 p.m., the gallery opens to the general public with dignitaries speaking to the crowd on behalf of various provincial and city organizations connected to the arts.

Since Portage hosts the event this year, the showing begins in Portage with pieces dropped off by the 24th from other depots, and installation of the artwork will be positioned by alphabetical order of the depots so you can easily pick out where certain artists' works are located. If an artist submits two or three pieces, they'll be positioned together. Beaton says three different jurors critique the works on the 26th and 27th, and then will place the artist's information in a packet for them to pick up when they arrive at 6:00 p.m.

Beaton explains the paintings will remain in Portage for the month of May, then travel to Morden in June, to Carman in July, and finally to Holland in August. 40 pieces are selected for the touring exhibition, with ten selected for the 2018 Manitoba Rural and Northern Juried Art Exhibition held in Winnipeg by the Manitoba Arts Network.

The ten pieces that were selected last year from 2016's event in Carman will receive an information package from the network in the next short while with details on how to submit their pieces for the 2017 Manitoba Rural and Northern Juried art show. The location has yet to be selected for the event in Winnipeg and will be finalized within the next couple of weeks when they'll also provide its date. Beaton adds there are definitely some works from Portage in that showing.

Beaton adds they're also looking for volunteers to install the pieces of artwork, seeing as there's a lot of material to be removed to make way for the new exhibit along with the 100 pieces to be placed. If you have a couple of hours and can join the installation committee you can give them a call at (204) 239-6029.