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ArtPrize artists discuss their entries in Q&As

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Artist Randy Finch. (Courtesy of Randy Finch)

Editor’s note: The Collegiate staff interviewed a variety of Artprize artists who shared the stories behind their entries.

Q&A with artist Randy Finch (pictured above)

By Spencer Westmoreland

Randy Finch, originally from Howell, Michigan, set his sights on creating numerous different ice sculptures and other works in his “Ice Castle” exhibit located at 298 Front Ave in Grand Rapids.

Finch and his team of artists really set out to capture the audience and potentially open up their creative side a bit more. 

Finch is an internationally known artist His art has been featured by many media outlets, including by “Good Morning America.” For the “Ice Castle” exhibit, Finch and his team made use of many different mediums including; ice sculptures, paint, digital mapping, wood, metal, “you name it.”

What inspired your ArtPrize entry?

I provide artistic displays for events so I leveraged our ArtPrize entries to advertise our services.

How long did it take to make?

Casually over two years.

What do you hope you convey to the people who view your art? 

That everything in this world started in someone’s imagination.

What do you hope viewers take away from it?

A desire to question things and express themselves creatively.

Finally, what would you do with the money if you won ArtPrize?

This year ArtPrize drastically changed the way the money is won. This year several of the prizes are for a random vote like first vote of the day which ironically we won on the first day of ArtPrize. Most of the prizes are for like $250. So I guess I spent it on a tank of gas and a pizza.

Q&A with artist Lindsay Bennett

By Hannah Tuinman

The artist who created the “Queen of Hearts” ArtPrize entry is Lindsay Bennett. Bennett is from Caledonia, MI. Her entry is at AC Hotels by Marriott in Grand Rapids, Michigan and can be viewed there until Oct. 2, 2022.

How long did it take to make your piece?

I have been working on it bit by bit for the last two years. Truncated, it was approximately 200 hours total due to the amount of hand sewing involved.

Artist Lindsay Bennett’s 2022 ArtPrize entry “Queen of Hearts” located in AC Hotels by Marriot in Grand Rapids. (Hannah Tuinman/The Collegiate)

What inspired you to create your entry?

I have had a love of both Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and for sewing since childhood. This started out as a fun side project to keep me sane during lock down and evolved from there. I collect editions of Alice for all of the different illustrations by different artists so I decided to put my own twist on a character in my own medium.

What would you do with the prize money if you do win?

If I were to win any prize money I would love to upgrade my sewing machine or add a new machine to the mix. Maybe fabric and supplies for the next gown idea or I’d be a boring adult and pay some bills but before any of that, I’d take my husband to dinner for supporting my art and probably buy some legos for my son.

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