Local artist’s work takes top prize in competition

Local artist Drina Fried was awarded best of show for her mixed media piece "Tranquility: Red Couch" in the city's ninth annual "Celebrating Life!" juried art competition.

Her work, along with the 24 other artists represented, is on display at the Bridge Gallery at Las Vegas City Hall through Sept. 18. The competition honors the work of local artists older than 50; prizes are awarded, with Fried receiving $500.

The theme of "Celebrating Life!" wasn't really in her mind when she entered the piece, Fried says, but the imagery in it does represent pieces of her past and potential future. Since winning the award, she has been thinking a lot about life; in July, Fried was diagnosed with uterine cancer.

She underwent surgery within a couple of weeks and has been documenting her recovery on her blog drina-gettinglifeoff hold.blogspot.com.

"I have a lot more art to do," she said during an interview the night before her surgery.

Fried, 66, moved to Las Vegas from California with her husband in March 2008, primarily so she could pursue her art.

She had no formal art education but has been doing some form of art most of her life, Fried says. It was a hobby that became a passion in 1999, when she was inspired to make art using fabric. "Tranquility: Red Couch" is a room featuring a red couch, all done in fabric. Through the window, a watercolor of a house is visible. The room is her ideal room and the house, she says, is one from her childhood.

"The piece was about going home to your roots," Fried says.

Of the 185 entries received this year, 83 were selected for the juried competition, says Jeanne Voltura, Bridge Gallery curator.

The annual "Celebrating Life!" contest was started in 1999 by the Las Vegas Arts Commission as a way to provide a platform for older artists to show their work.

Contact reporter Sonya Padgett at spadgett@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4564.