CAMMIE Awards

As March slips into our rearview mirror, another Contemporary Art Month (CAM) draws to a close with the annual presentation of the CAMMIE Awards, which recognize “excellence and diversity throughout the city’s rich landscape.” Essentially a wrap party celebrating CAM’s most impactful happenings, the casual ceremony brings artists, curators, gallerists, museum folks and art scenesters of all stripes to the quaint urban oasis of Chris Park for an evening of mixing, mingling, music and libations. Previously determined by online voting, nine of the 10 awards are now in the hands of esteemed local institutions: the San Antonio Museum of Art, Blue Star Contemporary, Ruby City, Artpace, the Carver Community Cultural Center, Luminaria, the McNay, the Spare Parts Mini Art Museum and the Southwest School of Art. As its name suggests, the Best of CAM People’s Choice award remains a crowd-sourced affair. “Artists and curators working in all mediums” are eligible provided they’ve presented “an artwork, exhibition or performance during Contemporary Art Month.” Casting a vote only takes a minute at contemporaryartmonth.com and the poll closes at midnight on Wednesday, March 27. (A handy refresher of this year’s official CAM happening can be found under the Calendar & Events tab.) In addition to doling out artful trophies created by local design company Heavy Heavy, this year’s wrap-up includes cocktails and craft brews courtesy of Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co., complimentary nibbles, beats by DJ Novasoul and one last chance to experience the Mini Art Museum’s compact exhibition “Color Concentrate,” for which Maryland-based curator Josh T. Franco tasked artists Carlos Rosales-Silva, Joshua Saunders, Kaeyln D. Rodriguez and Mark Anthony Martinez with each creating two tiny works of art — one prioritizing color and one considering the “social aspects of color.”