JULY 12, 2024 — Ken Stetz was named the 2024 George Gray Award for Artistic Excellence winner at the Coast Guard Art Program (COGAP) annual art acceptance ceremony Thursday. The award-winning artwork, “Absorbing the Roll” oil on canvas was selected from 36 artworks in the 2024 collection.
These 36 works by 31 COGAP artists are on exhibit at the Salmagundi Club, a New York art and cultural center located at 47 Fifth Ave., through July 26. An additional 28 works from previous years’ collections are also on display, including artworks by and in honor of deceased COGAP artists C.R. “Bob” Bryant and Dick Kramer. The collection includes works depicting search and rescue, marine environmental protection, patrols and training exercises.
The exhibition is free and open to the public and can be seen Monday through Friday from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Following the exhibition at the Salmagundi Club, the 36 works of the 2024 collection will be on display for two months at the Federal Hall National Memorial in lower Manhattan. This display will begin July 31.
The Coast Guard Art Program (COGAP) uses fine art as an outreach tool for educating diverse audiences about the United States Coast Guard. Through displays at museums, libraries and patriotic events, Coast Guard art tells the story of the service’s missions, heroes and history to the public. Art is also displayed in offices of members of Congress, senior officials of the executive branch of government and other military services and at Coast Guard locations throughout the country.
Coast Guard artists—most of whom are professional artists—volunteer their time and talents to help COGAP fulfill its missions. Today, the collection comprises nearly 2,000 works which are primarily paintings. These capture the daily missions the 40,400 men and women on active duty in the Coast Guard perform, including homeland security, search and rescue, marine environmental protection, drug interdiction, military readiness and natural resource management. Other works depict sea and air assets.
The program—celebrating its 35th anniversary this year—is a partnership between the Coast Guard and the Salmagundi Club, a New York City artistic and cultural center for over 140 years.
The Coast Guard welcomes requests for public displays of artwork. To learn more about bringing Coast Guard art to your hometown, please call the Coast Guard Art Program coordinator at 202-372-4643.
To learn more about COGAP, visit www.uscg.mil/Community/Art-Program/.