Ebb and Flow 2026, International Juried Art Exhibition
Congratulations to all the artists of 2026's Ebb and Flow!
Thank you to every artist artist who submitted. The artists brought the drama this year! Ebb and Flow runs the gamut of animal species. Please enjoy this collection of aquatic animals, mammals deeply embedded in water-based living, and birds of both freshwater and saltwater.
It is the goal of Wild Heart Gallery to support and promote animal and wildlife artwork in a wide range of genres and styles. Artwork for this exhibition was selected by jury based on theme, originality, skill, and quality of work. Jurors were Sarah Soward and Sharon Eisley.
Awards: Best of Show, Overall Runner Up, Artivism Award, Overall Honorable Mentions, and Finalists. There is also an art section of Selected Works.
Click on an image below to enlarge it.
BEST OF SHOW
Waiting for Dinner, by Rich Brooks 14 x 11 inches, High quality Photo paper mounted on Dibond
From the artist, "Archival Photograph mounted on Dibond of a Grizzly Bear and her twin cubs at a waterfall waiting for a salmon."
This is like a Renaissance painting in the form of wildlife photography. The frothing river water could be its own painting without the bears. With them, it has focus, emotion, story, and a play of color theory. The colors of the bears' fur brings forward similar colors in the water around them, whether rocks or some form of reflection is unknown. It helps to tie the bears to the river, as though they are a part of it and not simply visitors. They are embedded in and created for this ecosystem.
The play of light and shadow, and light and dark in general, do much of the compositional work in an invigorating way. The positions and poses (for lack of a better word) of the bear family add to the drama presented by the variations in value scale. This is the perfect moment, down to the cub's shadow on its mother's side.
OVERALL RUNNER UP
A Delicate Balance, Jennifer Cook 21 x 13 x 12 inches, Resin, metal, wood
From the artist, "Yellow-bellied sea snake and Olive Ridley Turtles (Pelamis platurus and Lepidochelys olivacea"
Balance of contrast seems tobe the theme here. The turtles and sea snake appear to be held up by nothing because the stand and support structures are as much of the piece aesthetically as functionally. There is elegance and dynamism here. It is both calm and active with a hint of danger. The animals are swimming in water that is air. There is a delicateness to the textures, even when rough, that is offset by the boldness of the sweeping and smooth vegetation stems that are, themselves, delicate.
ARTIVISM AWARD
Deceptive Drift, by Samantha Dormio 18 x 20 inches, Watercolor
From the artist, "My body of work is inspired by the dichotomy of hope and despair for our natural world, especially our wild Florida backyard. I incorporate subtle wildlife conservation storytelling into my paintings, where it takes the viewer a moment to comprehend what they are seeing. In "Deceptive Drift", the moon jellyfish help to lead the eye towards the plastic bag floating in the water. This, and many other human-induced challenges, however subtle, are ones that Florida-native wildlife face each and every day.
"However, I highlight the massive amount of hope for our wildlife and our environment through my vibrant color palette and whimsical background elements. The vibrancy represents the hope that still persists due to incredible non-profit organizations and communities of people making a positive impact on our environment every single day."
In addition to the wonderful run-down from the artist, we love the sea turtle's direct and challenging eye. Also notice how clear the artist makes the similarity of plastic-bag shape (not food) to jellyfish shape (food). The message of artistic animal activism (artivism) is strong.
OVERALL HONORABLE MENTIONS
Angela Parr Johanne Blaquiere Annik Janssens Kelly Singleton Jennifer Forrest Jennifer Cook Lawrence Dobens Bonnie Ann Glenn Marianne Brady Lauren Pearl Smoak Judy Salinsky Kim Krinke
Congratulations to our Overall Honorable Mention winners, Angela Parr, Annik Janssens, Marianne Brady, Lawrence Dobens, Jennifer Forrest, Kelly Singleton, Johanne Blaquiere, Lauren Pearl Smoak, Bonnie Ann Glenn, Judy Salinsky, Jennifer Cook, and Kim Krinke.
FINALISTS
Sahasa Angela Parr Cassie Taber Amy Rattner Barney Levitt Lucy Chambers Rachel Beacham Susan Solomon Violet VonRiot S. Talor Krupa Tina Sellek Mark Mayworm Viktoriia Tretiak Alena Ptsjolko Gloria Chadwick Sean Nelms
Congratulations to our award Finalists, Sean Nelms, Angela Parr, Susan Solomon, Violet VonRiot, Amy Rattner, Lucy Chambers, S. Talor Krupa, Cassie Taber, Tina Sellek, Rachel Beacham, Mark Mayworm, Viktoriia Tretiak, Alena Ptsjolko, Gloria Chadwick, Barney Levitt, and Sahasa.
SELECTED WORKS
Sally Clark Annik Janssens Gabrielle Peters Lucy Chambers Tamara Jones SadieThompson Joseph Batt
This section is for works that are selected for the virtual exhibition here on wildheartgallery.com but are not awarded.
Congratulations to our Selected Works artists, Sally Clark, Annik Janssens, Lucy Chambers, Tamara Jones, Gabrielle Peters, Sadie Thompson, and Joseph Batt.
SEE MORE ENTRIES
The entries that made it to the final round of judging are also available to view on our art submission partner site: ArtCall.org
These additional images will be available to view through approximately August 2027. After that date, ArtCall automatically archives the pages.
Award Distribution Masters of Domestic Animal Art 2026
Best of Show ($350 cash award)
Overall Runner Up ($175 cash award)
Artivism Award ($75)
Overall Honorable Mentions
Finalists
Best in Show receives $350 cash award and promotion on the following: Art Week, Wild Heart Gallery’s (WHG's) growing social media and other online media channels, WHG's eNewsletter, and WHG's home page (for duration of the exhibition).
Overall Runner Up receives $175 cash award and promotion on Wild Heart Gallery’s (WHG's) growing social media/other online media channels and WHG's eNewsletter and inclusion in a virtual group exhibition that lasts at least one month.
Artivism Award receives $75 cash award and promotion on Wild Heart Gallery’s (WHG's) growing social media/other online media channels and WHG's eNewsletter and inclusion in a virtual group exhibition that lasts at least one month.
Finalists receive promotion on Wild Heart Gallery’s (WHG's) growing social media/other online media channels and WHG's eNewsletter and inclusion in a virtual group exhibition that lasts at least one month. All award recipients also receive an award certificate, emailed as a PDF to the email address used for the submission process.
Selected Works are not awarded entries, but they are included in virtual group exhibition that lasts at least one month. There is no set number of Selected Works.
This art exhibition was juried by Sarah Soward and Sharon Eisley.
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