YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The National Midyear Exhibition, one of the nation’s longest-running juried exhibitions of contemporary American art, will open Sunday at The Butler Institute of American Art and run through Aug. 30.
An opening day reception will take place from 1-3 p.m., with cash awards presented to the winners at 2 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.
The exhibition is in the adjoining MacIntosh and Finnegan-Hynes galleries.
For more than eight decades, the National Midyear Exhibition has provided artists from across the United States with an opportunity for national visibility and professional recognition. This year’s exhibition attracted 829 entries submitted by 320 artists, representing a wide range of contemporary artistic practices from 28 states.
Following a competitive jury process, 84 artworks by 79 artists from 15 states were selected for inclusion in the exhibition. The exhibition reflects the diversity, creativity and technical excellence of contemporary American art, featuring works in painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, mixed media and sculptural relief.
Louis A. Zona, director emeritus of The Butler, is the juror for the National Midyear, which is now in its 89th year. Zona served for more than four decades as executive director and chief curator of The Butler, guiding the museum’s growth and helping shape its national reputation as a leader in American art.
The exhibition’s highest honor is the Midyear Prize, which awards one emerging professional artist a future solo exhibition at The Butler. The recipient will be announced at the close of the exhibition Aug. 30, with the Midyear Prize Solo Exhibition presented during summer 2027.
The Butler will award a total of $10,000 in prizes. Cash awards totaling $5,000 will be presented at the exhibition opening, while the Midyear Prize includes an additional $5,000 in support for shipping, insurance and exhibition expenses associated with the 2027 solo exhibition.
The next National Midyear Juried Exhibition will take place in summer 2028.
As part of the Midyear Exhibition’s Invitational Artist Program, The Butler has selected two accomplished regional artists to exhibit alongside the juried participants. Nancy Hawkins, based in Columbiana, is known for her plein air paintings of the landscapes of eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Christopher Leeper of Canfield is an award-winning realist painter and workshop instructor whose work has been exhibited nationally.
The Midyear Committee selected Hawkins and Leeper in recognition of their long-standing commitment to painting directly from nature and their shared ability to capture the beauty, atmosphere and character of the region’s landscape through compelling contemporary paintings.
Pictured at top: Louis A. Zona, director emeritus of The Butler Institute of American Art, is the juror of this year’s National Midyear exhibition.