Byron Fichter has been involved with the photographic arts since 2011 and his passion for art and photography landed his scenic landscape photos as the winner of Estevan Arts Council's Ev Johnson Memorial Adjudicated Art Show. The other contestants were Marleen Vicary, Maria Lbarra and Brenda Olsn.
Fichter will now be encouraged to apply to the Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Council's to have a touring exhibit around the province.
Linda Murphy, who is the visual arts chair for the Estevan Arts Council made a speech about culture in Estevan and the arts council itself. The art show is named after Evelyn Johnson, a long-time champion of the arts.
“This annual adjudicated art show was renamed in 2016 to honour our friend and long time Estevan arts supporter Ev Johnson, who passed away in May of 2016. Thank you to everyone who is here today for sharing your talents with us, we are very pleased and very impressed,” said Murphy.
Judge Kim Ennis expressed some difficulty in evaluating digital photographic images as art. Ennis eventually decided that the work that Fichter entered had met the criteria for being the best art that was submitted for the show.
“It takes a lot of courage to show your work and stand in front of the world and say this is me,” said Ennis in support of all the artists who entered their work.
Fichter is well-known as a motorsports photographer but Fichter has always had a very artistic side and is happy to be entering his photos into an adjudicated art show. Fichter's artistic passion for photography started on the Vegas strip a few years ago.
“By coincidence we were in Las Vegas and there was a photographer there named Peter Lik, that had a gallery on the strip and I walked in and immediately fell in love and I told myself this what I am going to do. The very next day I went home and bought a camera and just started shooting,” said Byron Fichter.
Fichter submitted work was landscape photography with a focus on abandonment and decay. “It is just really interesting to photograph stuff that is here now in a very dilapidated state but I always ask, how long is it going to last? I think it is important to record that history,” said Byron Fichter.
Fichter had his camera equipment stolen a while ago and at the time he was ready to give up his purist of the photographic arts. He eventually decided to stick with his passion and now his work might go to the provincial level. Fichter has intent to continue entering is work in various competitions.
The Ev Johnson Memorial Adjudicated Art Show is an annual occurrence in Estevan, and Ennis and Murphy are looking forward to it continuing in the future.
