First ever Augusta Poster Show organized by local artist

Jun. 8—For North Augusta resident Jason Craig, the best way to show his love for the area is through his art.

Using 18x24 inch posters, Craig and 29 other artists with connections to the CSRA will showcase their talents at SRP Park's Wow! Club for the first ever Augusta Poster Show on July 23-24.

"It's sort of a love letter to the town and each artist has their own interpretation of what is important to them," Craig explained.

The poster show concept came to Craig after a difficult year with the COVID-19 pandemic. From his usually busy travel schedule to show his art at other poster shows and events across the nation to virtually nothing at all, he put out a call to all the artists he knew to submit posters illustrating what Augusta means to them.

Over 100 artists submitted work for the show, leading Craig to eventually narrow down the talented field to 30.

"I just kind of looked at the artist's enthusiasm, their connection to the area, because they are not all from Augusta, and just the originality of their idea," Craig said.

"For some people, there's going to be a few James Brown posters, there's going to be a few golf posters, but beyond that, there's going to be a ton of different ideas," Craig said. "Some people are going to make old maps of the area. Some people are going to memorialize certain events that happen here, but it's all going to be very different interpretations of the same theme."

One of the 30 artists is Dawn M. Cardona, another North Augusta resident. As a children's book illustrator whose specialty is with paper, this opportunity is completely outside her comfort zone.

"I know that I am going to keep it true to my style and keep it whimsical. I am actually going to make a poster for children," Cardona said. "I know that most artists will do landmarks and things, but I think I am going to do it from my perspective and not being a native Augustan."

Cardona and Craig join three other North Augusta artists: Jeremy Mace, April Henry and Peter Stitt.

The event is open to the public with VIP tickets sold on July 23 night for $10 and is free on July 24. Friday night entry will allow guests to vote on a crowd favorite and purchase limited edition posters. A judging panel will also award their favorites on Friday.

"To do something where the artists get paid and then celebrates the artist, I think that is why it had such a big response," Craig said.

To learn more about the Augusta Poster Show, visit www.augustapostershow.com/