ArtPrize Rick DeVos: So You Think You Can Paint

Behind The Scenes At ArtPrize: Bad Art, Scornful Artists And A Billionaire's Dream
People are reflected in Johnny Clauson's "The Child" during ArtPrize at the Riverfront Plaza Building, near the Blue Bridge, in Grand Rapids, Mich., Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2012. Clauson is from Grand Rapids. (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Cory Morse)
People are reflected in Johnny Clauson's "The Child" during ArtPrize at the Riverfront Plaza Building, near the Blue Bridge, in Grand Rapids, Mich., Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2012. Clauson is from Grand Rapids. (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Cory Morse)

Every September, a quiet, churchy city in the American heartland undergoes a Technicolor transformation. Art pops up everywhere—paintings, giant insect statues, experimental happenings. Sidewalks and parks turn into open-air museums; taverns become galleries. A huge pot of money is dangled before the artists, $250,000(!) for the grand prize. And here's the best part: You know who gets to pick the winner? You do.

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