MAYS LANDING – Senior citizens from across Atlantic County competed in the annual Senior Citizens Art Show and top winners will go on to compete in the statewide competition being sponsored by the NJ State Council on the Arts and the Mercer County Division of Culture and Heritage later this year.
Adult artists, both amateurs and professionals, over 60 years of age were encouraged to showcase their work in a month-long exhibition, which included submissions in various mediums.
Bernice Galfont of Ventnor is a former English teacher who started exploring her art following retirement. She said she started working in acrylics but now creates nature scenes, dog portraits and landscapes using watercolors.
“I’ve been doing this for about 20 years now,” she said, standng next to her painting titled “Bird’s Eye View” depicting a bird at her backyard feeder that received an honorable mention.
“I especially like to paint songbirds,” she said.
Nancy Casciano of Egg Harbor Township took second place for her pastel creation titled “Citrus and Plums.” She is a retired cytologist who worked at Shore Medical Center for 26 years, but it was while she was studying her chosen field that she realized she had a talent for art.
“I majored in biology and that was my first introduction to drawing because I had to draw cells and flowers for class,” she said. “It came easy to me. Then I got into folk art and painting, but I started in force after retirement.”
Christina Trice of Pleasantville was energetic talking about her mixed-media piece, “Electric Lady,” so titled after the song, that took first place in the professional category.
She takes cigar boxes and covers them with jewelry, trinkets, camera bulbs, and other recycled materials to make her art pieces, which she shows at various art exhibitions.
She studied graphic arts at Penn State University but then life happened, she said.
“But I always kept my hands in it,” she said.
When she retired from the casino industry in 2020, she got more involved in the arts community.
“I recently took a sculpting workshop at the Noyes Arts Garage and I taught mentally challenged adults there,” she said. “Making art is time I enjoy so much. It’s important to stay busy and get your hands dirty and just keep on making things.”
Before distributing certificates to the winners, Atlantic Cape Art Gallery Coordinator Katherine Aikins said the program, now in its 46th year, started at Atlantic Cape and then moved to the Ventnor Cultural Arts Center for several years until the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think it was held in Ventnor one year after that but it’s been here at the Art Gallery for the last two years,” she said.
Atlantic County Chief of Staff Linda Gilmore, representing County Executive Dennis Levinson who was unable to attend, said the county also has an annual Teen Arts Festival in Hammonton that has been recognizing the county’s young artists since 1969.
“We are thankful the county keeps these events going every year. In our book, you’re all winners,” she told the crowd of artists gathered in the gallery.
The artists’ reception concluded the juried exhibit that opened on June 9 at the college’s main campus in Mays Landing.
Twenty-nine professional and amateur artists competed in a variety of categories, including acrylic, craft, mixed media, oil, pastel, photography, sculpture, watercolor, and works on paper.
Linda Lauria of Galloway Township was proud of her mosaic of “The Last Supper” made with tiny pieces of stained glass. She has been creating mosaics for a year-and-a-half and on Thursday, picked up a first place ribbon.
“I started with a class at the Ocean City Arts Center and now I’m hooked,” she said. “I get so involved, I don’t even know what day it is. It’s a great stress reliever. I highly recommend it for seniors.”
First place winners received a $100 monetary award and were invited to participate in the state competition.
First Place winners are:
Acrylic
Rosemary Snyder (Non-Professional) and Grace Zambelli (Professional)
Craft
Linda Lauria (Professional)
Mixed Media
Russ Fitzgerald (Non-Professional) and Christina Trice (Professional)
Oil
Ray Rennie (Non-Professional) and Edward Garvey (Professional)
Pastel
Janet Gabriel (Professional)
Photography
Dennis Loughlin (Professional)
Sculpture
Eleanor McKelvey (Professional)
Watercolor
Pamela Carchidi (Non-Professional) and Anne McManus (Professional)
Works on Paper
Edward Sperling (Non-Professional) and Susan Paskiewicz (Professional)
Best in Show
Non Professional Pamela Carchidi
Professional Grace Zambelli
An artists reception was held Thursday, July 31 to honor participants of the 46th annual Atlantic County Senior Citizens Art Show, held at the Atlantic Cape Community College Art Gallery on the Mays Landing campus.
Copyright Access Network 2025
