After a tumultuous 20th anniversary season that saw vandalism to its downtown Sarasota art exhibit and the cancellation of its planned show at State College of Florida Sarasota-Manatee's campus after the college requested the removal of the words "diversity," "equity" and "inclusion" from its artwork, Embracing Our Differences (EOD) is celebrating the opening of its 2024 exhibition with a free event on Sunday, Jan. 21, from noon-3 p.m. in downtown Sarasota’s Bayfront Park.

In addition to showcasing this year's artwork, event will feature three performances by Jah Movement, plus booths featuring interactive, kid-friendly activity from local arts and education organizations including The Ringling, Sarasota Art Museum, CreArte Latino, the Van Wezel, Asolo Rep, ALSO Youth and Suncoast Campaign for Grade Level Reading. The Big Blue Grilled Cheese Company, El Indio Tacos y Snacks, and Krewe Du Snoball food trucks will be stationed at the event. Embracing Our Differences will also recognize this year's Best-in-Show winners plus many of the artists who had their works selected for display.

Sarah Werthimer, EOD’s executive director, says that this year’s response to the call for artwork and inspirational quotations was strong, with 16,604 entries pouring in from 125 countries and 44 states. Students from 584 schools around the world submitted artwork or quotations to the juried exhibit. Awards for artwork are given for “Best-in-Show Adult,” “Best-in-Show Student,” and “People’s Choice” categories, with the last chosen by visitors to the exhibit. Adult art winners each receive $2,000; students receive $2,000, which they split with their school’s art program. Awards are also given for original quotations. Adult quotation winners each receive $2,000; students receive $2,000, which they split with their school’s English Language Arts program.

This year's Best-in-Show Adult artwork award went to Samantha Dennis from Woodbridge, Canada, for 'Hand'le with Care, which shows hands of different colors and abilities gently cradling colorful beams of light that are shaped as a heart.

The Best-in-Show Student artwork went to Sylvia Tirado, an 11th grader at Wycombe Abbey school in High Wycombe, United Kingdom, for her work Are My Roots Showing?, which depicts a young woman of color examining her dyed blond hair for signs of her true hair color, which is dark.

The Best-in-Show Adult quotation award is “I stand against hatred with love, prejudice with acceptance, and ignorance with knowledge,” submitted by Faisal Arefin from Rajshahi, Bangladesh.

The Best-in-Show Student quotation award is, “Spread kindness like the world depends on it...because it does,” submitted by Jessie Ochsendorf, a seventh-grader at Pine View School in Osprey. Her teacher is Susy Grandusky.

While EOD is best known for its annual art exhibitions, its educational initiatives continue all year long. These include professional development opportunities for educators, reading days, unity days, and other learning programs and events.

“These ongoing arts education programs represent the most important aspect of our efforts,” says Wertheimer. “We’re reaching and impacting the lives of thousands of students and teachers, both locally and around the world.” She adds that these programs have made an impact on more than 587,000 students since they were launched in 2004. During the 2022-2023 school year, 58,122 students and 1,981 teachers participated in EOD's programming.

To see all of the works in the 2024 exhibit, visit the online gallery at www.embracingourdifferences.org. For more information about these exhibits or Embracing Our Differences, call 941-404-5710 or click here.