2018 American Art Award Winners Announced

The three cash prize winners of arguably the biggest online art competition in the world were announced today. Best Of Show, winning the most gallery votes for one image in one category, went to El Salvador's ANTONIO CAÑAS for his magnificent 50x50cm oil, "Portrait Of Don Roberto." DANGUOLE SERSTINSKAJA of LITHUANIA took the Masterpiece for the one image winning in most categories, for "Father Valery Rudzinskas Healing Stare," a 20x28" oil on paper. Naïve artist LENA SKUGINNA of GERMANY received the Most Wins prize for 9 placements among the 50 categories.

This is the 10th anniversary for the American Art Awards organization which selects the 25 Best Galleries and Museums in America each May, then in late summer these revered art institutions vote on online art to decide the world's best new artists. In 2018, painters, photographers, sculptors and digital artists from 59 countries submitted online images to be scored, in hopes of winning career launch, cash prizes and/or 1st to 6th Place in 50 categories via the popular award site: https://www.AmericanArtAwards.com

AAA is headed by Thom Bierdz known worldwide since 1986 as Phillip Chancellor III on The Young & The Restless whose new memoir, Young, Gay & Restless: My Scandalous On-Screen & Off-Screen Sexual Liberations is set for release Nov. 1. Bierdz's previous 6X award-winning memoir, Forgiving Troy, on his schizophrenic brother murdering their mother, was the subject of a recent Evil Lives Here episode garnering six million viewers. Bierdz and news anchor Shannon Haro are contracted to co-host 50 upcoming videos revealing the 50 categories of winning art pieces in this year's American Art Awards.

Over approximately the next 50 days, the hundreds of other winning art pieces will be uploaded onto the award site after they are systematically revealed to the public one category at a time in news.

This year's 25 Best Galleries & Museums asked to vote on art were:

Best In Alabama - Alabama Contemporary Art Center
Best In Arkansas - Fort Smith Regional Art Museum
Best In California - Revolver Gallery
Best In Colorado - Colorado Fine Arts Center At Colorado College
Best In Florida - Lik Fine Art Miami + Lik Fine Art Key West
Best In Illinois - Trickster Art Gallery
Best In Kansas - Birger Sandzen Memorial Gallery
Best In Kentucky - E&s Gallery
Best In Louisiana - Newcomb Art Museum
Best In Massachusetts - Boston Sculptors Gallery
Best In Mississippi - The Ohr-o'keefe Museum Of Art
Best In Missouri - University Of Missouri Museum Of Art And Archeology
Best In Nebraska - Kiechel Fine Art
Best In Nevada - The Metropolitan Gallery Of Las Vegas Art Museum
Best In Ohio - Lee Hayden Gallery
Best In Oklahoma - Joseph Gierek Fine Art
Best In Oregon - Jordan Schnitzer Museum Of Art
Best In Pennsylvania - James A. Michener Art Museum
Best In South Carolina - Mary Martin Gallery Of Fine Art
Best In South Dakota - South Dakota Art Museum
Best In Texas - Art On 5th
Best In Utah - The Leonardo
Best In Washington - Maryhill Museum Of Art
Best In West Virginia - West Virginia State Museum
Best In Wisconsin - Museum Of Wisconsin Art