Far East Creative Expression festival winners
Published: January 12, 2012
Her grandfather was coach of a Kubasaki High School girls basketball team hosting one of the very first tournaments I ever covered for Stars and Stripes, in May 1982.
Six years later, I saw Robert Driggs' daughter, Kristi, play for the Dragons.
Now, Robert's granddaughter, Kaci, is winning awards, but ones away from the basketball courts. The Kubasaki junior earned third place in ceramics during this week's Far East Creative Expression festival at Okinawa's Onna Arts Center, near the posh Kafuu Resort on the island's western shores.
Some 106 students from 12 DODDS Pacific and DDESS Guam schools worked their fingers to the core over three days, and the creativity seen in their acrylic painting, ceramics, drawing, photography, printmaking and water-color painting were quite good. I've posted some samples – along with some less-than-serious looks at the participants themselves – on my Facebook page in a folder called “Far East Arts Swag.”
Here is the complete rundown of winners in each category. Top three placements were selected by the students, with one curator’s choice per category:
Acrylic painting
1, Alexander Georges, Daegu High, South Korea; 2, Angela Holloman, Nile C. Kinnick, Japan; 3, Amber Hawkins, Kadena, Okinawa (curator’s choice).
Ceramics
1, Stephanie McDole, Osan American, South Korea; 2, Juili Meyer, Nile C. Kinnick, Japan (curator’s choice); 3, Kaci Driggs, Kubasaki, Okinawa.
Drawing
1, Amanda Anderson, Kadena, Okinawa; 2, Alexander Green, Robert D. Edgren, Japan; 3, Alyse Gurak, Seoul American. (Lauren Alpuerto, Yokota, Japan, curator’s choice).
Photography
1, Nikka Stephens, E.J. King, Japan; 2, Cosette To, Osan American, South Korea; 3, Vivian Yamanishi, E.J. King, Japan. (Susannah Iles, Osan American, curator’s choice).
Printmaking
1, Kyndall Bork, Nile C. Kinnick, Japan; 2, Sarah Kane, Kadena, Okinawa (curator’s choice); 3, Kassandra Esskuchen, Kubasaki, Okinawa.
Water-Color Painting
1, Marissa Wachter, Osan American, South Korea; 2, Ashley Grove, Kadena, Okinawa (curator’s choice); 3, Yonheum Son, Seoul American.
