Lander University sophomore Rashad Williams took one of three top honors in the 2018 Peach Belt Conference Arts Exhibition.
The virtual exhibition, open to all students from the PBC's eight schools, featured 43 pieces that included ceramics, digital art, drawing, installation, painting, printmaking, public art and sculpture.
Williams, a graphic design major, placed second overall with his entry "Skull Face" in the category of photography.
"This was actually my first time entering the PBC Art Exhibit," said Williams, a native of Orangeburg. "In fact, this is only my second time entering an art contest period."
Jon Holloway, director of Lander's Monsanto Art Gallery, added that for someone only in their second year of study, Williams' work is already "going beyond the surface and into the depths of personality."
Williams' entry shows a former high school teammate, garishly tattooed his on arms and chest, while smoke seems to be escaping from one side of the mouth into a haze toward a dark brick wall - and the viewer is never sure which is real and which is surreal.
"The picture represents releasing your 'inner demons,'" Williams said. "We all have things that we personally struggle with in our minds. The skull shows that this struggle is from within, and the smoke symbolizes the releasing of those demons - the things that hold us back in life, and the reason why some people don't reach their full potential."
Ashley Gillespie, Exhibition Director at Coker College in Hartsville, S.C., served as this year's PBC judge.