Congratulations to MFA candidate Pamela Beach for being the first student artist from the University of Utah to be a finalist for the AXA Art Prize. According to their website:
The AXA Art Prize shines a spotlight on the re-emergence of figurative art and the undiscovered stars of its future. The competition is built on the legacy of a related prize which ran in the UK for a decade. Now in its seventh year in the United States, the AXA Art Prize has established an excellent reputation as an insightful overview of the best new talent nationwide.
Beach's work, The Youngest, was selected as one of 40 images included in the exhibition, which will be held at the New York Academy of Art in November 2024. Pam is a second-year MFA candidate focusing on Painting and Drawing. You can see her work in person this November during the Interim Exhibition, or during our Graduate Open Studios event (date TBD).
The department congratulates Ms. Beach on her success.
The Youngest, 2024, oil on panel, 48 x 33.75 inches
A day will come for all parents when they pick up their child for the last time. But neither will recognize it is the last time. The parent may strain at the effort. The child, now a bit big for picking up, might feel awkward and gangly. The moment will pass casually, and uncelebrated, as significant moments usually do. If they’d known it was the last time, they would have held on longer. - Pamela Beach