A unique work of art celebrating 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 first century will be unveiled next week in a special ceremony.

Kara Palmer, the brilliant young creator who won the Lakes District Museum鈥檚 Search for 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 Centennial Artist competition earlier this year, will reveal her commissioned work in council chambers (15 Third Ave.) at 6 p.m. on Dec. 6 鈥� the hundredth anniversary of 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 incorporation.

Palmer spent between 80 and 120 hours on her 18鈥� x 24鈥� oil painting commemorating the village鈥檚 centennial. The task started with her staring at a blank canvas. Then inspiration took over.

鈥淚 did quite a few rough sketches and different plans and tried to figure out the best way to visually represent the things that, to me, make up this town,鈥� she said last week.

鈥淥f course, the painting ended up looking only kind of like my original plan, but that鈥檚 to be expected. When I found myself stuck and unsure what to do next, I would drag my partner, Dalen, into the room, and we would shoot suggestions at each other until it all clicked.鈥�

For Palmer, who specializes in fantasy art, completing a commission that depicts real-world subjects wasn鈥檛 easy. Though the work鈥檚 form and content remain a closely guarded secret, she has given the community a few tantalizing hints.

鈥淓verything about this was challenging,鈥� she noted. 鈥淚 prefer painting from my mind鈥檚 eye because it鈥檚 very hard to get something wrong that doesn鈥檛 exist to anyone else. I was intimidated by painting wildlife for the first time, but once I got started, I found I enjoyed it, and it was not nearly as hard as I thought it would be.鈥�

鈥淚 think the hardest part by far was the top portion [of the work], 亚洲天堂 Lake in 1923. All I had was a black-and-white photo, and I, of course, had to measure everything to get it to scale. It was extremely tedious and difficult, but I am happy with the results because I know it was, at the time, my best [work].鈥�

Palmer can turn her attention to new works now that the commission, which earned her $2,000 in cash and prizes, is complete. She said, though, that participating in The Search for 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 Centennial Artist has impacted her and the art she creates.

鈥淲ith the challenge of painting something in four hours, I managed to kick my habit of overthinking every brush stroke,鈥� she laughs. 鈥淗opefully, that habit stays kicked.鈥�

鈥淚t [the competition] was my first time doing anything public with my art, and it was extremely fun and a great honor,鈥� she concluded. 鈥淚 really hope we can do other competitions in the future!鈥�

Residents are invited to celebrate the arts and 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 centennial one final time by attending the Dec. 6 event, which also features a silent art auction and social.

鈥淢any of the artists who participated in The Search for 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 Centennial Artist 鈥� including a couple of the finalists 鈥� have generously donated their work to us,鈥� says Michael Riis-Christianson, curator of the Lakes District Museum. 鈥淔ifty percent of the proceeds from the sale of these outstanding works will go to the artists, with the remainder being used by the museum for future arts programming. Come down, enjoy some snacks and refreshments, and meet people who made this competition so successful.鈥�

The Search for 亚洲天堂 Lake鈥檚 Centennial Artist, a once-in-a-century art competition, was funded by twelve generous donors.

The event, organized by the Lakes District Museum, started in May with the Junior Centennial Artist competition and continued throughout the summer.

More than $11,000 in prizes and artist honorariums were handed out to participants.