By Julia GrayContributor 
The annual Augusta University Juried Student Art Exhibition ended on March 23 at the Mary S. Byrd Gallery of Art on the university’s Summerville campus.Edgar Miles, who majors in art and design, as well as communication, is one of the students whose work was on display at the gallery. Miles received an award at the Morris Museum of Art for his photograph featured in the AU Juried Student Art Exhibition.Along with Rebecca Hogue, Miles was awarded the Bindler Award at the exhibition’s opening ceremony, on March 1. He won for his photo “Jared Playing the Banjo.”The photograph, created using the technique of light painting, was shot in one setting and used what’s called an in camera effect to create focus and light.“The photo was taken late at night in my back yard where I had complete darkness,” Miles said. “I used flashlights, L.E.D. because it produces a white light, to create my own lighting so I could focus it where I wanted.”This year, the juror was Shanequa Gay of Atlanta. Gay also has her work, with Shannon Morris, on display at the Byrd Gallery. Morris is the Byrd director.Student artists were given a theme of Southern culture and inspiration from a design pattern called toile, a pastoral scene often depicted on old fabrics and plates from as early as the 1800s. Along with Gay, students took this inspiration to create their own toile pattern, collaborating to create a dress and wall mural.Art and Design chair Scott Thorpe reported an excellent turnout for this year’s exhibition.“This year’s art exhibition went really well,” Thorpe said. “It’s basically our favorite day of the year (opening day) because we get to see the some of the best work our students create throughout the year and also give out scholarships and awards.”While the 2018 Juried Student Art Exhibition has come to a close, there is no need to wait another year to see some of the great pieces produced by students. Thorpe recommended coming out and supporting the arts department in other events, such as the upcoming senior art exhibitions.Juried Student Art Exhibition winners:Lillian Rosen Award The Rosen Award was created by AU’s first Morris Eminent Scholar, James Rosen in honor of his mother Lilian Rosen. A student is chosen based on excellence in color theory and art history. These topics were chosen specifically because of James Rosen’s love for both art history and color. The Color Experience class was created by Jim Rosen during his tenure here at Augusta University, known then as Augusta College. Winner: Kirstyn Harris Artist Guild of Columbia County AwardThis Scholarship recognizes an outstanding student Art student from the CSRA. The funds are raised annually through work produced and sold by the Guild. This award is to be given to a single Art major. The award is determined by the Faculty on the strength of portfolio produced by a currently enrolled Art major.Winner: Caleb Barrett Katherine Reese Pamplin and Nathan Bindler The following five awards come from pooling the funds from the Katherine Reese Pamplin and Nathan Bindler scholarships. Pamplin Award The College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences is named after Katherine Reese Pamplin a generous supporter of Augusta State University and monies set aside for student scholarships. The Pamplin Award is in recognition of artistic achievements in the area of visual art.Winners: Alexandra Barrett, Kejuan Tanksley, & Macy Goodwin Bindler AwardNathan Bindler was a professor in the department and retired by the early 1980s, at which point he became professor emeritus. To honor Nathan Bindler, the art faculty renamed an existing art scholarship in his name to recognize students of high artistic accomplishment.Winners: Edgar Miles, Rebecca Hogue Studio Arts Foundation Award The Studio Art Foundations was created to highlight the importance of the first-year Foundations classes within the arts degree and to honor the efforts of an outstanding art major or minor who is enrolled or recently enrolled in the three Studio Foundations courses. Selection criteria include a willingness to receive and provide critical feedback, to take risks in their work, dedication that exceeds base level requirements and strength across both 2D and 3D art media:Awards for Excellence in Studio FoundationWinners: Abigalis Mejia- Saladin, Katrina Christie The Philip Morsberger Purchase Award The Philip Morsberger Purchase Award was created to honor Philip Morsberger and his contribution to art and to Augusta State University, now Augusta University in perpetuity. Philip is the only American to hold the position of Ruskin Master of Drawing at The University of Oxford from 1971-1983, before holding the position of ASU’s Morris Eminent Scholar in Art Emeritus. The purpose of this award is honor and remember Augusta University students with outstanding artistic talent ability by establishing a collection of art in Mr. Morsberger’s name. Annually the full time art faculty will select a student work of merit to purchase.Winner: Brooklyn Wilkerson-Hadley The Samuel J. and Sarah Singal Scholarship The Samuel J. and Sarah Singal scholarship was made possible by a dedicated artist and former Dean of the Graduate School at the Medical College of Georgia, a close friend and student of the department for more than 25 years, Sam Singal. He created the scholarship to honor his parents. They were Russian immigrants who believed “the only way out of the ghetto was through education.” The scholarship is awarded annually to one outstanding student in the Department of Art and Design and selected by the full time faculty in the department.Winner: Alexandra Church Eugenia Comer Scholarship Francis Eugenia “Genie” Comer was a faculty member of the Department of Art at ASU from 1971-1996 as a full time professor and then as a professor emeritus until 2003. Genie was known for dedication to teaching. She taught 2-D, painting, printmaking, and art history. Genie was known for her stories of her world travels, her unique sense of pattern, color, and her ability to provide honest critiques without a trace of harshness. The scholarship is awarded to the most outstanding student in Art and selected by the full time faculty in the department.Winner: Carmen Moses