World’s Best Charcoal & Graphite Artists / 2023 AMERICAN ART AWARDS: STANLEY, ADEPOJU, OTOO, KOTARSKA, OKOLIEZE, ALIM, ZHANG, KIM, CHANG, WALTERS & ZHANG
Artists from 72 countries competed in the 2023 AMERICAN ART AWARDS. Twenty of the most revered galleries in the USA were sent around 2,000 online images to score in drawing, painting, sculpture, digital and photography. The 300+ winning works, 1st to 6th Place (and ties) in all 50 categories, can be seen in this series of articles.
USA’s top galleries decided winners in every medium: oil, acrylic, watercolor, charcoal, pastel, realism, impressionism, naïve, abstract, expressionism, human figure, animal, landscape, fantasy, surrealism, pop, portrait, self-portrait, political, erotic, cubism, floral, humor, spiritual, etc..
Art collectors can see all the winning images and corresponding contact info to the best contemporary artists in the world here: https://americanartawards.com/2023-winning-artists-american-art-awards/
Winners in this category are from NIGERIA, GHANA, POLAND, MALAYSIA & USA.
BIO OF 1ST PLACE WINNER: Nwite Stanley
A hyperrealist/surrealist contemporary artist from Nigeria, his art is a steadfast quest towards the known, unknown, knowable and the ever elusive. Exhibited in prestigious galleries in Nigeria, he received the “ibex dream fund” from the ibex collection in 2019. https://www.instagram.com/nwite_Stanley/
SEE ARTISTS SITES / ARTIST CONTACTS:
1st Place NWITE EJIKE STANLEY NIGERIA https://www.instagram.com/nwite_Stanley/ “Cry Of A Merman” 152.4x198.12cm Graphite and charcoal on canvas.
2nd Place — Tie OLUWATOSIN ADEPOJU NIGERIA oluwatosinjoseph79@gmail.com “Virile” 16×20" Charcoal pencil on paper.
2nd Place — Tie BENJAMIN OTOO GHANA https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087375202108 “Addicted” 12x16” Charcoal & graphite.
3rd Place — Tie AGNIESZKA KOTARSKA POLAND https://instagram.com/agnieszka_kotarska_?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ== “Cyclical Nature (Photographer Credit M.K. Slowinsky)” 25x21" Charcoal powder on paper.
3rd Place — Tie AGNIESZKA KOTARSKA POLAND https://instagram.com/agnieszka_kotarska_?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ== “Internal Potential (Photographer Credit Lelya Martian)” Charcoal, graphite.
4th Place — Tie EMMANUEL OKOLIEZE NIGERIA emmanuelokoliezeart@gmail.com “A Different Realm” 24x42” Graphite and charcoal on paper.
4th Place — Tie WIN ALIM MALAYSIA https://www.instagram.com/p/CLlOjkQHFr_/?img_index=1 “The Unforgettable Smile” 29.7x42cm Graphite on paper.
4th Place — Tie XUEPING ZHANG USA https://xueping-zhang.pixels.com “Super Stage” 11x14” Pen and ink.
5th Place — Tie ISABELLE KIM USA kimheewon@hotmail.com “Infinite Balance” 19x19" Charcoal on paper.
5th Place — Tie IRIS CHANG USA hyesyoo@gmail.com “Under The Light” 18x24” Charcoal.
6th Place — Tie DANIEL WALTERS USA www.facebook.com/DanWOriginals 14x11” “Copic Footbridge” Pencil, graphite, paper.
6th Place — Tie XUEPING ZHANG USA https://xueping-zhang.pixels.com “Over Drinker” 11x14” Pen and ink.
In 2023, AMERICAN ART AWARDS had submissions from these 72 countries: Afghanistan, Algeria, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Columbia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Serbia, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Switzerland, Tobago, Trinidad, Turkey, UK, Ukraine, USA, Viet Nam, Wales, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
USA’s 20 Best Galleries & Museums who were asked to score online art in 2023 were:
American Art Awards 20 Best Galleries & Museums for 2023, in alphabetical order:
BEST IN ARIZONA: Exposures International Gallery Of Fine Art
BEST IN CALIFORNIA: Sparks Gallery
BEST IN COLORADO: Mirada Fine Art
BEST IN FLORIDA: MAC Art Galleries
BEST IN GEORGIA: Black Art In America™ (BAIA)
BEST IN INDIANA: Gallery Forty-Two
BEST IN KANSAS: CityArts
BEST IN KENTUCKY: KMAC Contemporary Art Museum
BEST IN LOUISIANA: Jonathan Ferrara Gallery
BEST IN MAINE: Clarke Gallery
BEST IN MONTANA: Cawdrey Gallery
BEST IN NEBRASKA: Kiechel Fine Art
BEST IN NEVADA: Elena Bulatova Fine Art
BEST IN NEW MEXICO: Thornwood Gallery
BEST IN NEW YORK: Gallery 23 NY
BEST IN SOUTH CAROLINA: Mary Martin Galleries Of Fine Art
BEST IN TEXAS: Ao5 Gallery
BEST IN SOUTH DAKOTA: South Dakota Art Museum
BEST IN VERMONT: Helmholz Fine Art
BEST IN WYOMING: Gallery Wild
American Art Awards https://www.americanartawards.com/ annually awards 20 museums and/or galleries, who agree to score art and award nearly 300+ deserving contemporary artists from 60+ countries: painters, photographers, sculptors and digital artists.
