The Nominees for Aether d'Animuax, 2007

UPDATED: July 03, 2007

The Aether 2007 Jury and I would like to extend our sincerest congratulations to ALL of the artisans who participated in this debut edition of Aether d'Animaux! The level of skill, creativity and dedication put forth was simply breathtaking.

The Jury had a very hard time making their selections, and I believe it is fair to say that every piece submitted to this project was high-of-quality and enjoyable. Thank you all with the greatest appreciation for your time, talent and faith.

HOW THE JURY PROCESS WAS PERFORMED:
I alone collected every submission sent to Aether by mail, eMail, and FTP and scanned them and/or preparred them for the Jury.

All works were assembled digitally and converted to 72dpi images of approximately no bigger than 6x6 inches and laid-out in a web-based polling site.

Private and password protected links were sent to Jurors who logged in with their names and email addresses.

Works were collected on pages of 30 at a time. Jurors were encouraged to take as much time as necessary. Most took several days.

Jurors were asked if the work satisfied the PG-13 and Anthropomorphic criterion. Most passed-over works resulted here.

Primary judging criterion asked Jurors to select work that they felt best represented what Aether should be trying to say about the Furry Fandom, both to fans and to outsider interests.

Jurors were also asked if the work should be nominated for special recognition and/or candidacy for the cover.

As Aether did not secure 13 Jurors prior to judging, it was decided that for inclusion into the book, a piece needed only a multiplicity of votes. All works received at least 1 vote. Ironically, many works that only received one vote were a vote for special recognition. Overall, this process broadened participation.

I alone tallied the votes and assembeled the following list based on that information.

And now for the part that is as bittersweet as it is energizing:

The following assembly is a full list of all participants whose work(s) were nominated by the Jury for inclusion in Aether 2007.

I would like to take this opportunity again to note that not a single artist received a unanimous vote for inclusion, and pleasantly enough not a single artist received zero votes for inclusion. Truly, the 2007 Jury performed a spectacular job in remaining open-minded all the while being professional.

With this in mind, I continue to realize the perceived hypocrisy in this project. While it is not a majority belief, there are those who see this project as one aiming to create ranks among artists or, worse yet, a way to support elitism. While I cannot force such a thought to disappear, I can only continue to speak about Aether's intentions, which are nothing more than showcasing good, solid furry art. Does that mean that if your name does not appear in this year's list that your art is not "good"? Of course not. I will be the first to admit that Art in all its forms is incredibly subjective. Of the 13 illustrations that I put forth into Aether, the Jury eliminated most of them. No one was immune to the fairness of this process. By far and away, the most common reason a work was passed-over was for fears that it went too far over the "PG-13" restriction. The second most common reason that a work was passed over was the feeling it was not Anthropomorphic enough. And lastly, the third most common reason a work was passed over was because something particular about the image was hard to understand.

We are a dramatic genre with a penchant for seeing the bad side of things. I encourage those individuals whose works do no appear below to remember that your chances improve two-fold for next year, and there is absolutely nothing personal about these decisions. This has been a free project so far, and if this works well for 2007, it may continue to be that way. You took a professional risk and participated in something that I truly hope helps people realize that erotic materials are not the only form of Furry Art. You've helped better our fandom, and you've lost nothing.

I thank everyone for their support, participation and continued interest!

We are proud to present this year's roll-call (names are listed alphabetically, last-name first):

Adams, Giovanna
Åhman, Frida
Albee, Timothy
Angyl
Anime The Great
Arctic Sekai
Aura Moser
Bagheera
Balaa
Beetlecat Originals
Bloodhound Omega
Blotch
Bruton, Heather
Butler, Tracey
CatWarrior
Cerezo, Hernan
Cesarin, The White Dragon
Chalosan
Chu, Vinqa
CircleA61
Crescentmoon
Damalia
Darby
Dark Natasha
Dervacor - Need High-res Art
Dragon Dust Studios
Duo
Egypt Urnash
Enig
Featherdust
Flame
FirestormSix
Foxfeather
FoxyFennec
Francis, David
Frenzee
Gibson, Roz
Giles, Megan
Goldenwolf
GrayWolf
Guyver47
Haller, Rusty
Harlan-Stein, Diana
Herisheft
Hibbary
Hochstine, Christiee A.
Hogarth, M.C.A.
HollyAnn
Ikegawa, Lance
Jace
Javachickn
Jeddibub
Kadath Griffin
Kaelan
Kaji
Kalico Kat
Karass
Katanimate
Kemp, Rebecca
Kennedy, Terry
Kierstal
Kitsumi
Korrok - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
KrossBreeder
LaCroix, Kobi
Lady CyberCat
Latin Vixen - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Light, Michele
Little Bloo Wolf - Need Entry Forms
Livingstone, Monika
Lizardbeth
LizKay
Lordsethos
LynneKitty
Mab
Mapper
Mari Rosa
Marsh, Ariel
Max BlackRabbit - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Micah Fennec
Mick, Trancy
Miyagami, Kacey
Moonbyrn
Moonstalker
Mystech
Necro
Neekko
Nevar
Nillia
Nimrais
Ninanai
NorthWolf
POD - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Preston, Leona
Rey Fox
Robinson, Sammy
Rog Minotaur
Runtt
Sangluna
SanTara, Sandra
Scale
ShinigamiGirl
Sight Hound Lady - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Silber
Silverblue
Smith, Terrie
Something Wild - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Sonderjen
Soro - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Spirit Creations
Starbys
Swandog
Synnabar
Tafoya, Kendra
TailsRulz
Tamen
Tangherlini, Michael
Target
Tark
Taurin Fox
Thomas Blue
Thornwolf
Turbine Divinity
Ultraviolet
Venator-Somniorum - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Vera of The Willow
Visark
White AFI
Wicked Creatures
Xian Jaguar
Yedaji “Ses” Nikopol
Yee, Brian
Zaush - (Carried over from Mock-Up Stage) - Need High-res Art and Entry Forms
Zetallis

Thanks again to ALL who participated! We hope for your renewed interest in 2008!

Please note that if you would like to be un-considerd for this project, simply send and email to KrossBreeder immediately.