State University of New York at Fredonia senior Media Arts major Raymond Bonilla of Queens has earned the Best in Show award at the second annual Great Lakes Emerging Artists Competition for his animated video "Seesaw."
 
Established by the student organization Art Forum during the 2003-2004 academic year, the Great Lakes Emerging Artists Competition is a juried art contest at SUNY Fredonia that drew entries over 100 submissions from undergraduate and graduate students in eight American states and the Canadian province of Ontario this year. Louis Grachos, director of the internationally renowned Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, selected the winner of the Best in Show Award.
 
Mr. Bonilla is a graduate of Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, NY.
 
He is the son of Raymond and Seydi Bonilla, also of Queens. Earlier this semester, his mixed media work "Winter on Campus" appeared on the cover of The Statement, a quarterly SUNY Fredonia publication. As winner of the Best in Show award, Mr. Bonilla will receive a prize of $200.
 
Sarah Maisler of SUNY Fredonia and Anthony Marchetti of Minneapolis, Minn. collected the runner-up prizes in the 2004-2005 Great Lakes Emerging Artist Competition. Ms. Maisler was recognized for a sculpture piece entitled "Nylon Corset" while Mr. Marchetti distinguished himself with a photo entitled "7-312, 3rd BR." Mr. Bonilla is the first SUNY Fredonia student to earn the Great Lakes Emerging Artists Competition Best in Show award. Liz Dodds, a graduate student at the Rochester Institute of Technology, earned 2003-2004 Best in Show honors with her oil on canvas painting "Chomp." The Great Lakes Emerging Artists Competition will remain on display through Sunday, April 3.
 
"It has been inspiring to see the members of Art Forum dedicate so much time and effort in organizing the Great Lakes Competition," said Rockefeller Arts Center Art Gallery Administrator June Miller-Spann. "The selection of work for this show will be intriguing for all who attend. I am pleased that our SUNY Fredonia students can view of the work of other regional artists enrolled in arts programs. Visual learning and pure visual pleasure are important components of this type of exhibit." The Rockefeller Arts Center Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Thursday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Admission to the Rockefeller Arts Center Art Gallery is free. To visit the Art Gallery outside regular viewing hours or to book a group tour, call Ms. Miller-Spann at (716) 673-4897. All inquiries are welcome.
 
The Rockefeller Arts Center Art Gallery will conclude the academic year with a pair of exhibits that will highlight the work of the Class of 2005. The first of two Graduating Senior Exhibitions will open on Friday, April 8 at 7 p.m. and remain on display through Sunday, April 17. Graduating Senior Exhibit II will open on Friday, April 22 at 7 p.m. and will be available for viewing through Sunday, May 8. These installations will feature selections in such diverse media as painting, drawing, graphic design, sculpture, ceramics and photography.
 
To learn more about art programs and exhibitions at SUNY Fredonia, visit the Rockefeller Arts Center website.
 

SUNY Fredonia senior Media Arts major Raymond Bonilla is the winner of the Best in Show award at the 2004-2005 Great Lakes Emerging Artists Competition. The contest, sponsored by the SUNY Fredonia student organization Art Forum, drew over 100 entries from eight U.S. states and Ontario.

The animated film "Seesaw" by Raymond Bonilla was named winner of the Best in Show award at the 2004-2005 Emerging Artist Competition and can be seen at the Rockefeller Arts Center Art Gallery at SUNY Fredonia through Sunday, April 3.