The Center for Contemporary Arts National - known as CCAN - is a national juried art competition of the Center for Contemporary Arts in Downtown Abilene, Texas.

Over $7,000 is awarded annually to artists in 11 media categories, one juror’s award, and a best of show.

The Center for Contemporary Arts is delighted to announce Oaxacan Gold, an art exhibit curated by the esteemed National Geographic contributing photographer, Greg Davis. Oaxacan Gold will highlight the beauty and uniqueness of Oaxacan culture through his ethereal photography and a stellar collection of Oaxacan folk art.

Not another cowboy show…

Art in Context by Terry Browder - Opening reception April 19. 2024, 5-8pm Jane Adams Breed Gallery

Join us as Signature Artist Member and expressionist painter, Patty Rae Wellborn shares her distinctive style in a new body of work.

Join us in celebrating Cuban-American artist Rolando Diaz as he shares his body of work depicting the horses of the biblical Revelation.

The Center for Contemporary Arts National - known as CCAN - is a national juried art competition of the Center for Contemporary Arts in Downtown Abilene, Texas. In 2023 the 7th annual national exhibition and competition received over 367entries submitted from 34 states across the United States. 192 works were selected for exhibition in the Center’s Jane Adams Breed Gallery and Gallery 3.

Over $7,000 is awarded annually to artists in 11 media categories, one juror’s award, and a best of show.

“My own personal memory as a dancer contributes to the existing space I am creating through experiences of discipline, practice, balance, and relaxed fluid faculty of control. I try to capture this through various materials, the movement of my own body as well as the memory of movement that can become distorted and transparent. I enjoy using various materials such as charcoal, chalk pastel, acrylic and textured surfaces.”

Drinking The Sun is an exhibition presented by the Artist Membership of the Center for Contemporary Arts. Based on the poem, The Pond, by Mary Oliver, the exhibition includes works that evoke Summer and memory and childhood - unique to each artist. Painting, photography, sculpture, printmaking, video, mixed-media, and installation works are combined to create a dynamic exhibition that will transport the viewer into memory.

In celebration of Earth Day, two local artists are creating an exhibit featuring trash, plastic, and other recycled materials at the Center for Contemporary Arts. Refuse Reformation, a two-person exhibition opening at the Center in late March, are works created by Kari Perkins and Larla Morales. The art featured in the exhibition is made entirely from recycled materials and reclaimed plastics. Unitedly, the artists wanted to create an exhibition that sends a message: one about the overuse of plastics and underutilized resources.

Surreal Perspective is a solo exhibition by Anthony Brown that features works created by the artist’s use of combining images he captures while traveling around the country and making new landscape scenes with a vivid and lively palette. This exhibition features some of Brown’s most recent work as well as some of his past work.

A retired architect with more than 40 years of experience in the field, Jack Harkins creates paintings that are inspired by historic photos of Native Americans and their environs, geologic formations of the southwest, indigenous structures, animals, and landscapes.

This exhibit will feature contemporary art of all media created by Center Artist Members, inspired by the stories and image of our Western Heritage. Works can even be purely abstract so long as there is a connection between the work and a tangible inspiration.

Although technically difficult to master, encaustic painting is gaining popularity with contemporary artists for its dimensional quality and luminous color. Because the encaustic method uses heat at all stages, it requires good ventilation and safety precautions. To sidestep this, many artists are using the cold wax medium, which decreases drying time, increases the paint’s workability, and closely resembles the encaustic look.