"What the Artists are saying..."
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“Firstly I’d like to thank Galeria Moderna for the opportunity to showcase my work and raise funds for the incredible charities involved. I had an amazing experience exhibiting and would highly recommend all artists to get involved with the team and have a go at entering.
Dave Pinsker
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This is just so good, I have no words to express my gratitude for all you are doing to promote the winning artists! Thank you so much and have a Happy New Year 2023!
Irina Hoble
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Being shortlisted, let alone being selected as one of the twelve winners for the Cambridge Invitational 2022 for Galeria Moderna has been a dream come true. As this is my first ever award, it will be cherished greatly.
J and all at Galeria Moderna and Castle Fine Arts created the most wonderful of opening nights and made everyone feel so welcome.
Being a winner has given me more focus and determination to continue in my field of portraiture, which is my passion, and has opened up opportunities within the art world. Thank you.
Lisa Zaman
I was delighted to be selected as one of the artists for the exhibition in Cambridge this year. In the past I have found that it can be hard for a ceramicist to have their work appreciated as easily as fine artists; so I applaud Galeria Moderna for their ambition to include a wide and diverse mix of mediums and styles to create such an inclusive and exciting exhibition.
Jenny Ebdy
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“As a first-time entrant for the Cambridge invitational Art Contest I was absolutely delighted to be selected as one of the twelve winning artists.
The awards evening at the Castle Fine Art gallery in Cambridge was fantastic - such a friendly and welcoming event. It was really great to see all the selected artwork and, especially, to meet and chat with the other winning artists, the judges and gallerists. I was so proud and delighted to be presented with my award by the Mayor!
Just a couple of days later my mixed media painting Pasé por tu casa (I passed by your house) was sold in the exhibition! I am so pleased that the sale is also supporting the charities Arts and Minds and Arts4Dementia.
Huge thanks to j and Galeria Moderna for organising and guiding us through the process and to everyone at Castle Fine Art and Cass Art for supporting the Contest. It has been an amazing experience and a real boost to my confidence and creative energy.”
Thank you so much. The artist meet and preview was really enjoyable. It was a pleasure to meet all the team!
Rikki Morgan-Tamosunas .
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The preview evening was a marvellous experience and I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to meet the team and have arty chats with fellow creatives! A very friendly and supportive atmosphere and I was delighted to receive the Mayor’s Award.
Sue Walker
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I was delighted to be selected for the awards in Cambridge. Thanks to J and Castle Fine Art for hosting a wonderful exhibition - it was great to see all the works displayed in such a lovely space and meet the other artists.
Teresa Munn
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The exhibition looks fabulous and sits well within the gallery space.
Always great to chat to other artists about their work and processes.
Thanks again for all your hard work putting all together.
Just to confirm sale monies Less Arts 4 Dementia commission received with many thanks.
ANDREA CRYER
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Mostly when exhibiting an artist delivers their work to the gallery, attends a Preview and then collects their work at the end of the exhibition. Yes this all happens with Galeria Moderna, however the artists are cosseted, given prizes interviewed at the preview and the interview put on line and then interviewed later for another art site. This was a much more artist centred experience – such a pleasant change.
Cameron Scott
`It is a fantastic opportunity and great to see my work in a Mayfair gallery, and the organisers are more involved and supportive than in a lot of competitions.
Liam Dunne
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“Galeria Moderna are extremely efficient and sensitive in their dealings with winning artists”
Paddi Dimitri
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I was delighted to be selected as one of the artists for the exhibition in Oxford which gave me a real fillip. It also helped a lot that the competition was well organised with all the arrangements made very clear. While I was disappointed not to have been able to attend the Awards and Preview Night, I much appreciated being able to send a friend in my place who was made very welcome and thoroughly enjoyed the event.'
Linda Lennard
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It was a lovely evening, full of happy talks and friendly faces. I got to meet and speak to the Lord Mayor of Oxford, and to many of the award winning artists. I really appreciated all the effort from the Galeria Moderna to publicise the artists' name and work. I think it made this competition and event stand out for me compared to the other exhibitions I had participated in the past. ``
Laleh Kamalian
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I wanted to say a massive thank you to you and the team for putting on such a brilliant event!
It was lovely to finally meet you all and see the amazing work on display.
A thoroughly enjoyable day all round.....so well done to all involved!
Fantastic news! Your client has decided to go ahead with purchasing one of my pieces. I'm thrilled!!
Stephanie Else
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”I am happy to work with Galeria Moderna. They are friendly, professional, very hard working and a great support for the artists. Thank you for a wonderful collaboration!”
Cristina Ilinca
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It was a fantastic evening, and I had a great time talking to so many talented artists and knowledgeable industry professionals. The hosts made everyone feel relaxed, thank you.
Max Morawski.
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The Cambridge Invitational Competition has been nothing but a positive experience for me. Just to exhibit again after the year or two that we have all been through is exciting, while the private view was cheerful and inclusive. Good to meet some of the other artists and beneficiaries, and of course to win the Mayor's Award was the icing on the cake.
The sharing of awards enhanced the feeling of inclusivity while the one-on-one conversations with J and also the Castle Gallery team helped the feeling that you were part of something and appreciated. A big thanks to all involved along the way.
Andy Dakin.
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It's been an absolute privilege to be a part of this year's show. All the more wonderful to be a part of a real exhibition after such a challenging year...
Clare Millen.​
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The private view and presentation of the Award trophies were well organised and hosted, making us feel very welcome and relaxed. It was so very nice to meet all the other award winners and be at a real physical private view at last; a fun evening, culminating in a short video interview, and despite it having been a very long and tiring day for me, all in all it was a wonderful experience, and I would thoroughly recommend any artist thinking about it next year to apply. I very nearly didn’t, and I am so glad I did! Since then, even in the past 3 days since the Private View there has been an increase in social media interest, so that is something else to bear in mind to anyone hesitating.
Michael Norcross
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I was thrilled to have my work selected for the exhibition and receive my two awards... the John Doubleday Art award was a lovely unexpected surprise, made more special by it being presented by John Doubleday himself.
Ann Goddard.
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I enjoyed the awards and preview evening very much. It did feel a special occasion to receive an award from the Deputy Mayor. All the gallery team were very friendly and helpful. The exhibition is well presented, and it is lovely to have my work shown in such a central gallery in Cambridge. Christine Calow.
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“I’m a very introverted person – drinks, galleries and noise are normally enough to send me running for the hills. But everyone on the team did their best to make me feel welcome and I had some good chats with some really interesting people. I thoroughly enjoyed both the quality and the diversity of the winning artwork, and I thought the exhibition was genuinely inspirational. Thank you.
”Martin Southwood.
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The awards evening and private view at Castle Fine Arts was the first time since the start of the pandemic that I have had the opportunity to meet a group of like minded artists and discuss our art practice. This was wonderful, I tried to speak to all the winners. The gallery staff were warm and welcoming as they had been when I dropped off my sculpture the week before. The whole event was perfect for me. Barbara Marshfield.
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I would like to thank all who had a hand in creating such a special and memorable evening.
All of the work was fantastic and the camaraderie, discussion and artistic flair on display is a real personification of the
host of arresting art at the exhibition. Alexander Newman, The Oak Bistro.
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“It was an absolute pleasure to co-host The Cambridge Invitational 2021; the joy of the winners' faces and the opportunities that arise even after the exhibition make this competition very special.
"It was our first event since lockdown, so it felt brilliant for everyone to celebrate and enjoy the awards and exhibition.”
Stacy Bodkin. Gallery Manager Castle Fine Art.
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Last night was a really most enjoyable event. The setting was perfect for the exhibition and the atmosphere was friendly and had a real buzz about it. I was delighted to have won the award and then doubly pleased to find I had won the Hilton award as well!, Paul Rodhouse
Thank you, for the excellent organisation, and for inviting me to participate in the contest.
Charles Nightingale..
Its been a huge confidence boost and I'm keen to get stuck into some new work!
Thanks again for all your hard work and encouragement, it’s given me a great footing for 2020
Dario Fisher.
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It was an honour to be asked to the Cambridge Invitational Art contest and to see the fantastic art work, and to be able to choose my favourite one. I was so pleased to be able to hand out the awards and to meet all the artists.
Mayor of Cambridge, Cllr Gerri Bird
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I would like to thank you for last nights opening. I thought the Private view was very well organised. Rachel Thomas
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It was a great evening, glad to have been a part of it all!
Nathalie Staples. Cambridge Contemporary Art.
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"We are absolutely delighted to have been chosen as the beneficiary charity for this exciting new initiative - looking forward to 2020's events! "Emily Bradfield. Arts & Minds.
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The Cambridge Invitational Art Contest and Exhibition 2019 Preview and Awards ceremony was a wonderful evening, co-hosted with Stacy Bodkin from Castle Fine Art.
The prestigious awards for the inaugural contest were presented by the Mayor of Cambridge Cllr Gerri Bird along with representatives from our sponsors Mid summer House, DoubleTree by Hilton, Scudamores Punting and Tindalls Art.
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The contest raised money for our chosen charity Arts and Minds who were in attendance.
In addition, our gallery's commission from all sales was donated to them.
I would like to thank all the artists who have taken part this year and those who contributed in creating a new and exciting contest for the City of Cambridge. B.Thornton - Contest Organiser
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