THE JUDGES

In May of 2008, Art of Politics will open online People's Choice voting for one month. People from all over the country can go to the AoP website and vote as many times as they like for their favorite poster. Once online voting closes at midnight on May 31, 2008 the 30 most popular posters will be submitted to the judges for final selection. The judges will each select their top three favorites. The votes will be tallied and from the top 30 posters, three will become the winners of The Art of Politics 2008.

The Art of Politics jury is made up of the following judges. Each judge brings unique and reputable experience with them. The Art of Politics is honored to have them as the official jury and recognize their commitment to community, art and working for change. We cannot thank them enough for their time and passion.

John Carr

Artist, designer and curator John Carr lives and works in downtown Los Angeles. His political poster art has appeared on streets and in galleries, magazines and books internationally. He is the curator of Yo! What Happened to Peace? a traveling peace/antiwar poster exhibition, and editor of a poster art book by the same name. He maintains a blog on art for peace and related issues at yopeace.org. He is also co-founder (with partner Karen Fiorito) of Hard Pressed Studios, a printmaking operation focusing mainly on social issue themed works, and printing with artists such as Robbie Conal and Mear One.
yopeace.org
hardpressedstudios.com

Art Chantry

Art Chantry has been an artist in Seattle for over 30 years, producing a body of work that, no matter how unorthodox, still rivals some of the best graphic designs in the world. Art has won numerous design and advertising awards, including a Bronze Lion at Cannes and the Poster Laureate of the Colorado International Invitational Poster Exposition. His work has been collected and exhibited by some of the most globally prestigious museums and galleries - including: The Louvre, Smithsonian, Library of Congress and The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Hundreds of books and magazines have published Art's work and in 2001, Chronicle Books published the monograph of his artwork in Some People Can't Surf, written by Julie Lasky.

Working in Seattle, Art carved out a style that took hold of the popular underground music scene in the early 1990s. Dubbed grunge by culture mavens, it actually was a look developed at an alternative news- weekly named The Rocket, where Art began as their Art Director in 1984 and continued to be involved off and on for over ten years. During that time, the magazine became a virtual hub for Seattle's music and culture scene. Soon, his ideas extended beyond The Rocket to the fledgling record label Sub Pop where they are now etched in history. Art's ideas found further nuance in his work for the garage rock record label, Estrus Records, where his style found a perfect symmetry with the their musicians.
www.artchantry.com

Susan Hoffman

Partner
Wieden+Kennedy, Inc.

Susan Hoffman has been with Wieden+Kennedy, an international advertising agency, for the last 25 years. Susan opened both the Amsterdam and London offices for W+K and then became the Creative Director of Wieden+Kennedy's WK12 experimental ad school, www.wk.com.

Susan has a tendency to shake things up a bit. That's probably because she finds the status quo boring. Susan is never satisfied unless her work feels fresh and interesting. She put that perspective into ads for: Nike, Microsoft, Cartoon Network, The Paramount Hotel, Miller High Life, Coca Cola, Heineken, Google and Target. Susan is currently in Portland, OR and an acting partner at Wieden+Kennedy.

Tara McPherson

Tara McPherson is a painter, poster artist and freelance illustrator based out of New York City. Creating art about people and their odd ways, her characters seem to exude an idealized innocence with a glimpse of hard earned wisdom in their eyes. Recalling many issues from childhood and good old life experience, she creates images that are thought provoking and seductive. People and their relationships are a central theme throughout her work.

Tara's array of art includes painted comics and covers for DC Vertigo, advertising and editorial illustrations for companies such as Pepsi and Spin Magazine, and numerous gig posters for rock bands such as Beck, Modest Mouse, Mastodon, and Death Cab For Cutie. She exhibits her paintings and prints in fine art galleries all over the world.

Currently she is painting for an upcoming gallery exhibition at Jonathan Levine Gallery, working on a painted graphic novel for DC Vertigo Comics, designing toys for Kidrobot based on her characters, and teaches a Concept Illustration class at Parsons in NYC.

Taylor Stevenson

Taylor Stevenson is a Portland, Oregon based artist and curator whose artwork is didactic and diverse. She also works as a Spanish and Portuguese interpreter in a medical clinic for the homeless. Since developing www.redsemillaroja.org, an international, web-based network for socially conscious artists, in 2005, her medium has evolved from the drawing and writing of educational graphic stories for grassroots organizations to creating functional craft and design works with reused materials. She carves intricate printing blocks out of Styrofoam; weaves baskets with plastic bottles and magazine paper; designs backpacks and gowns with ironed plastic and crafts jewelry, toys and clothing with used bicycle inner tubes.

Largely influenced by international graffiti and South American craft, her work aims to empower impoverished communities through the creative reuse of commonly discarded materials. She has lectured, taught, published and exhibited her work internationally, and will curate an exhibit of street-influenced Brazilian and US reuse art in Beirut, Lebanon this Spring.