About Brittney Denham

Brittney DenhamOur 2020 MSUB Student Exhibition Juror Brittney Denham is an artist and art educator based in Sheridan, Wyoming and teaching at Sheridan College. Denham holds an MFA from The Ohio State University and was a recent resident at UCross Foundation. Her artwork was included in the recent North x Northwest Juried Exhibition at the Yellowstone Art Museum, has been exhibited nationally, and has been included in Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies. 

Juror's Comments

Below are Denham's comments about works she selected to honor with awards.

Best in Show: Laura Meintjes “Devolution Day” Laura Meintjes, Devolution Day, won Best of Show for a myriad of reasons. I loved how the quality of line evoked the idea of memory. Sense of place disappeares at the fringes of the frame feeling as though the moment in time is fleeting. The strength of craft, color theory, and 2-D design bolsters the concept and lets the idea shine through.

Merit Award 3-D: Vince Long “Structural Flexibility” I chose Vince Long’s Structural Flexibility for a 3-D Merit Award because the craft was outstanding. I thought there were thoughtful choices in the repetition of the triangle shapes being used as resting points for the rest of the sculpture. The cadence that the conjoining triangles produced was made relevant by the smooth and strong joint work.

Merit Award 2-D: Olivia Ruesch “Pedestal” Olivia Ruesch’s Pedestal has so much power in its simplicity. The use of the triptych helped push forward the different gestures of the figure. I loved how graphic the line quality was. Most of all I liked how the simple use of color made me think of the person not being on the pedestal at all. The bruised body it made it apparent that it had left the perch of the pedestal at one point in time.

Honorable Mention: Ellen Kuntz “Am I the Madonna or the Whore” Ellen Kuntz’s Am I the Madonna or the Whore was succinct in delivery. The use of text was deliberate and minced no words for the viewer. The intentionality of the floral dress as the canvas, hand embroidered text, and context of time helped the work move into the canon of feminist work.

Honorable Mention: Peter Herzog “Grain Silo” Peter Herzog’s Grain Silo has a lovely tonal range. I thought stripping the photograph of color helped the viewer distill the work down into shape, highlights, and shadows. I truly enjoyed the thoughtfulness of how the photograph was displayed.

Honorable Mention: Terri Porta “Alone” Terri Porta’s painting, Alone, has a marvelous use of color! I loved the composition of the work, and how the stripping of the outside figures faces helps isolate the person in the yellow dress that much more. One of my favorite parts of the painting is the man standing in the foreground shoulder. The contouring with density of stroke and the highlight of green in the top of the pants has a great quality of light.