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Appalachian Mountain Photo Competition Opens at Turchin Center on First Friday, March 3

The exhibition of the 48 finalists in the 2017 Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition opened in the Turchin Center on King Street on Friday, March 3, which happens to be the First Friday of the month in downtown Boone. 

The First Friday art stroll happens once a month at 6 p.m. and guests enjoy complimentary refreshments, art openings and receptions, live entertainment and demonstrations at participating establishments in downtown Boone. 

In its 14th year, the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition (AMPC) provides both amateur and professional photographers the opportunity to showcase their interpretation of the unique character, people, places and pursuits that distinguish the Southern Appalachians. The categories include: Adventure, Blue Ridge Parkway, Culture, Our Ecological Footprint, Flora/Fauna and Landscape.

Over 900 entries were submitted and the jury panel selected 48 finalist images which are on display in the Mezzanine Gallery beginning March 3. Visitors to the Turchin Center are invited to participate in the People’s Choice Award selection beginning on Friday, March 3 through March 24, 2017.

All awards will be announced on Saturday March 25, 2017, at the Saturday screening of the Banff Film Festival and through media outlets. Rich Campbell associate director of Appalachian’s Outdoor Programs says, “We are excited about the images this year. We are particularly thrilled about the number of ASU students who had images selected this year for the highly selective competition.”

The jury who selected the 48 finalist images and the final award winning photographs are two highly accomplished photographers and artists. Andrew Caldwell is a professor of commercial photography, as well as a practicing commercial and contemporary fine art photographer. Ann Pegelow Kaplan is a professor in the Department of Cultural, Gender, and Global Studies, and is a faculty affiliate of the Department of Art and Interdisciplinary Studies.

The AMPC is a partnership between Appalachian State University’s Outdoor Programs, the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts and the Virtual Blue Ridge. The AMPC provides support for the university’s Outdoor Programs and their extended expeditions that are educational journeys of discovery that take students around the world. The competition is generously sponsored by the Mast General Store and supporters include the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, Nikon Cameras, Stickboy Bread, Bistro Roca, Peabody’s, Smoky Mountain Living, Footsloggers of Blowing Rock, and Appalachian Voices. Visit the AMPC for more information: www.appmtnphotocomp.org

The “Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition” exhibition will be housed in the Mezzanine Gallery from March 3 to June 3, 2017.