To be honest we have been over-overwhelmed with amazing responses for the "Art For Art Sake" contest, and each of the artists shined their best. It is truly inspirational to see so many styles, so many ideas, approaches to art itself, where one creates not for the audience but for themselves. I really enjoyed seeing some get out of their shell, and actually bare their soul for everyone to see, as well as creating things from events that compounded deep within them leaving their mark. This time around has been really hard choosing the top ones that touched our souls, because each and every work deserved to stand and shine.

Judges:


First Place for work achieved 19 points, he won 1 year subscription and a Daily Deviation

^stigmatattoo awarded 5 points and said: "With a photographic approach to representation in the carefully reproduced out-of-focus background and crisp foreground detail, this piece displays this deviant's technical mastery and his ability for invoking wonder and reverence in the viewer."

^misskittyoooo awarded 5 points and said: "This is simply a beautifully painted piece full of vibrant colours and amazing texture. The lighting and detail is amazing."

^oilsoaked awarded 5 points and said: "Is a beautiful classic painting whose subjects are so tangible, it's as though I could reach out and touch them. The imagery of the cold angel reaching for the man is so powerful that I can feel chills running down my spine. His despair is so overwhelming--and yet he doesn't realize he's got an angel on his shoulder. The emotions this brings to the surface are so intense, I just want to favorite it again and again!"

^guruubii awarded 4 points


Second Place goes to for work achieving 12 points, and won a 6 month sub.

^stigmatattoo awarded 4 points and said: "Exquisitely crafted, the attention to detail and execution gives a strong ground for the conceptual associations and cultural juxtapositions of this piece."

^guruubii awarded 5 points

$spinegrinder awarded 3 points


Third Place goes to for work , achieving 10 points, and won a 3 months sub

^oilsoaked awarded 4 points and said "Ornate and whimsical, both features very characteristic of the medium. The way the artist draws the eye in a dance across the screen using only a very limited palette is very reminiscent of the eastern style, and is incredibly well-applied. In both technical skill and in vision, this piece is quite the success."

^misskittyoooo awarded 1 point and said: "Again, while I'm not really a fan of anime styled work, you cant deny the skill here. The details and use of colour is amazing and bold. the bleeding of the watercolours adds a softness while the sleek strong details adds a nice contrast to that."

^PurpelBlur awarded 5 points

Highly Commended

for work

^sbaraci said: "Delicate self portrait full of symbolism. It just shows how much hard work and thought went into it, where artist actually went out of his comfort zone, and painted a portrait a bit differently than his usual. Stepping out the ones comfort area, and baring their own soul to the world, that is not created only for the beauty sake is something that always needs to be commended for."

for work

^misskittyoooo said: "This one appealed to me most because it reminded me of a young Serial Killer I read about named Mary Bell. While I'm not normally drawn to anime/manga styled work there is obvious skill with colour use, composition and painting displayed in this image. "

for work

^sbaraci said: "The greatest achievement an artist can get from their work is to get reaction from the viewer to it. This one made me smile, gave me a bit of a giggle, its imaginative and twisted and it gave me a whole new view on term superheroes."

for work

for work

^sbaraci said: "Sometimes there is more to the work than initially meets the eye, and sometimes, the things that we usually leave unspoken surface through ones work. Sometimes we suffer silently for one that has passed away, and carry their memory within us, we carry their legacy, and their love and all prescious things that we have experienced together. Memories fade over time, same as colours do, and all we are left with are emotions, we remmember how much we loved being with them, the warmth of their embrace, things that seemed small at the time, but over the time images dissapear, and even a thought of the love they gave us makes us smile."

for work

^misskittyoooo said: "Being a huge fan of unicorns I couldn't not love this little sculpture. The unicorn is unique and very skillfully crafted with a very traditional rawness that I love. "

for work

for work

^stigmatattoo said: "A richly textured eidetic landscape, this work presents seductive harmonies that suggest intentionality as well as chance."
^sbaraci said: "Wonderfull political work, rich in textures, and bold in approach."

for work

^stigmatattoo said: Showing great control of the media chosen, this drawing shows a fine sense of texture and light and a dark storybook feel that makes the viewer curious about the scene and its characters.:

for work and

for works and

^oilsoaked said: "*el-woopo never fails to impress me with his expressive strokes and emotional subject matter. The dramatic color scheme complements the dripping paint to create a general atmosphere of dis-ease. As the title "delectatio morosa" would have you believe, the piece is delightfully macabre and morose!"

^sbaraci said: "I love the freedom of the brush strokes while still controlling the tone and keeping the colour limited. This is strongly emotionally charged work, full of pain, and emotional hurt that manifests itself physically"

for work

^stigmatattoo said: "Bold and dynamic new school drawing, the composition is well balanced and flawlessly rendered."

for work

for work

for work

^oilsoaked said: "Hard work and perseverance pay off in this fantastically realistic portrait! The subtle skin tones! The bright shining eyes! Bereaved certainly does her reference an honor, and despite what she says about the hair, I think it looks amazing. The reflections! The lighting! Need I say more?"


Special thanks to all judges and to everyone who has entered. Congratulations to everyone for your amazing artworks submitted.