About the Jurors
The Arizona State Museum's Southwest Indian Art Fair (SWIAF) offers recognition and awards to artists whose work is judged to be of exceptional merit. The goals of the jury process are to support excellence in the arts and to offer all participating artists opportunity for recognition from leading professional figures who have knowledge of both cultural and craft practices common to Native American art.
This year an invited panel of expert jurors selected artists for 33 awards of excellence. Jurors were identified by a committee composed of ASM/SWIAF staff. As with past fairs, the 2009 SWIAF jury for adult entries is composed of established working Native American artists and a non-native arts professional. These jurors reflect a cross section of perspectives and artistic disciplines. Acquisition Awards are chosen by ASM Collections staff.
Arizona State Museum offers thanks to the 2009 SWIAF jury for their commitment to sustain the high standards SWIAF has developed over its 15 year history.
Prize Awards Jurors
Mark Bahti is second generation Indian Arts dealer in Tucson. He has owned and operated Bahti Indian Arts since 1972. Bahti has authored several books on Southwestern Native American arts, the most recent of which is Silver and Stone and a standard on fetishes and the beliefs associated with them, Spirit In The Stone. He has judged numerous Indian Arts competitions and brings a wide range of knowledge and experience to the 2009 SWIAF jury.
Susan Folwell was born and raised in Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico, where she was immersed in the world of traditional pueblo pottery. She began working in clay as a child. Her mother, renown potter Jody Folwell, was a major influence on her interest in pottery and experimentation. Folwell’s work is in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian; Museum of Art and Design in NY; Heard Museum, Phoenix; Denver Art Museum; and more. She has won top awards at Santa Fe Indian Market, Eight Northern Pueblo Indian Market, and the Heard Museum Indian Market and Fair.
Martin Kim has received regional and national recognition in sculpture, graphics, collage, and ceramics. Kim has exhibited at the Denver Art Museum, the Takoma Art Museum in Takoma WA, St. Johns College in Santa Fe NM and The Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art in Boulder CO. Monotypes by the artist are in the collection of the Tucson Museum of Art. Kim also served as the Youth Awards Juror this year. He has taught numerous classes to middle school and secondary school students and has Chaired the SWIAF jury committee for the past 13 years.
Beth Grindell, Arizona State Museum Director, selected the winner of the Museum Director's Award. She continues the tradition begun by previous director, Hartman Lomawaima.
Acqusition Awards Jurors
Patrick Lyons, Head of Collections at ASM, combines a knowledge of the needs of the ASM collections with expertise in many crafts to help select this year's purchase awards.
Diane Dittemore, Curator of Ethnographic Materials for ASM, has extensive knowledge of ASM's broad contemporary and historic collections.
Susan Beckerman, Frank Finkenberg, and Jean Nerenberg (who selected the Friends of the ASM Collections Purchase Award along with curator Diane Dittemore and Patrick Lyons) are dedicated members of the Friends of the ASM Collections and avid students as well as collectors of Southwest Indian art.