Thursday night, the 2015 NC Waterfowl Conservation Stamp was unveiled and winners from the competition and the NC Decoy Carving Championship from previous years were on display for the public for the first time.

Sponsors, supporters, artists and Washington city officials came together at the Beaufort County Arts Council at the Turnage Theater on Thursday night to honor this year’s winners and to thank all who contributed to make the event possible. The event has long been the premiere winter event in Washington for attracting people from outside the area, said Lynn Wingate, director of Washington Tourism and Development Authority.

“People often think of Washington as a destination for people to come in the spring and summer, but in the winter time, who’s going to get out on the river?” Wingate said. “The festival has given reason for many people to come to the area. It celebrates our wildlife heritage so it’s just an overall good event for the community, as well as those from throughout the state and all over the east coast.”

The event, made possible through numerous sponsors and Washington’s partnership with the Wildlife Resources Commission and the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild, featured the unveiling of the winners for the 2015 N.C. Waterfowl Conservation Stamp Competition.

The unveiling included the top five entries out of over 30 entries, Wingate said. Among the winners were: first honorable mention (4^th place), Broderick Crawford, Bufflehead; second honorable mention (4^th place), Tim Turenne, Tundra swans; third place, Matt Clayton, bufflehead; second place, Scott Storm, bufflehead; and first place, Guy Crittenden, black ducks.

Crittenden, a Virginia native and resident, started entering other state competitions three years ago and is a third-time contestant in the competition, he said. Honored at the event for winning this year’s competition, Crittenden expressed his appreciation for the genre, as well as the artists who submit entries and winners of past years. He also spoke about the camaraderie between artists in the waterfowl art community. Crittenden has won four different years in the Virginia Migratory Waterfowl Conservation Stamp Competition, and thoroughly enjoys this particular genre of art, he said.

“North Carolina came up on the radar as one of the biggest and best and just the prestige and the wildlife artist in this, who are nationally known, is a steep field so to even be in this company with these guys is just amazing for me,” Crittenden said. “This is my first North Carolina win, and it’s a thrill. As far as art competitions go, this is one of the biggest thrills of my artistic career — just the prestige and the national recognition you get. I’ve gotten calls from artist all over the country congratulating me so it’s a big one. (We artists) are kind of a friends community. I have admiration for all these guys and they have it for me because we share that commonality. This is a cornerstone in my artistic career right now. These things are really like feathers in your cap, figuratively and literally.”

Crittenden’s artwork will be used as the artwork for the prints and stamps sold to help pay for North Carolina’s portion of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, an international agreement aimed at protecting waterfowl and waterfowl habitat. The sales of prints and stamps also support waterfowl research and purchases equipment used in wetlands management.

The event also featured winning artwork from each year’s competition since 1983, as well as winning decoys from the past 20 years of the N.C. Decoy Carving Championship. The stamp collection, contributed by David Gossett, a member of the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild, saw its first public display in its entirety at the Thursday night event.

Mayor Mac Hodges was in attendance and said the event was big in terms of economic impact and brings many people from outside of Washington.

“For a little town like Washington, a lot of stuff that happens goes on because of sponsors like Lee Chevrolet, First South Bank and Potash,” Hodges said. “We’re looking for a huge crowd. This is really one of my favorite events. Speaking from an economic impact, half of it being held at the civic center and the other half at Festival Park, the crowds stop and eat and shop and the merchants love it. It’s one of the better events for economic bang that Washington has and the duck folks come from everywhere.”

Dr. David Cobb, chief of the division of Wildlife Management with the WRC said the event’s partners see the event as a way to promote the public’s appreciation of waterfowl, wetlands and all the associated wildlife.

“This kind of interaction and outreach with the public is extremely important so when we can bring these partners together, the outcome is a lot grander than when we work individually and that’s why we value it so much. To have (the collection) all here in one place, gives you a really good appreciation for (the artwork). When you combine the craftsmanship, the decoys and all this work, it’s amazing so it not only helps express their ability, but it pulls people together and promotes that enthusiasm for all those species.”

The event kicked off the 20th East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival and North Carolina Decoy Carving Championships set for this weekend in Washington.

 

East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival

Schedule of events

 

Today

9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — Festival open to the public at various venues, including art show and art sales at Civic Center, First South Sportsman Tent at Festival Park, outdoor market at Festival Park, Archery Alley, retriever demonstrations (10 a.m. and 2 p.m.) and boat-building demonstration, all at Festival Park.

9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — N.C. Decoy Carving Championships, Peterson Building.

9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. — Children’s decoy painting workshop, N.C. Estuarium.

1 p.m. to 3 p.m. — Beaufort County Traditional Music Association jam, caboose lawn at Civic Center.

6 p.m., dinner; 7 p.m., auction, — Washington Yacht & Country Club, reservations required.

11 a.m. to 4 p.m. — N.C. Waterfowl Conservation Stamp exhibition, Turnage Theater.

 

Sunday

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. — Festival open to the public at various venues, including art show and art sales at Civic Center, First South Sportsman Tent at Festival Park, outdoor market at Festival Park, plus Archery Alley, retriever demonstration (1 p.m. at Festival Park) and boat-building demonstration.

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. — N.C. Decoy Carving Championships, Peterson Building.

10 a.m. — Waterfowl-calling competition, Turnage Theater.

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. — N.C. Waterfowl Conservation Stamp exhibition, Turnage Theater.

 

Free shuttles available to transport people from venue to venue (Civic Center, Turnage Theater and Festival Park).