Nancy Wright

CHESTER — Two sisters have won back-to-back Best of Show awards at the Midland Arts Council Summer Gallery.

Each is a member of the Steubenville Art Association.

Winning the art show is a difficult task in its own right, officials noted.

But winning the show one year, and then having your sibling win the event the following year, well … those are odds very few would bet on.

Nancy Wright, a resident of Chester, was named the top winner at the 2025 Midland Arts Council Summer Gallery.

Joyce Beatty

She received the award for Best of Show. Her winning artwork is entitled “Friendship.”

The portrait shows a young girl dressed in a white frock and hat, painted from the back.

She submitted her painting into the competition against 88 other competitors, vying for that top achievement.

Wright’s sister, Joyce Beatty, also a Chester resident, was the recipient for the Best of Show award during last year’s event.

Beatty’s Best of Show piece won last year against 90 other submissions entered into the contest.

Her artwork was entitled “South of France.”

Beatty has been named the SAA’s featured artist for this year, while Wright will serve as the featured artist next year. The sisters have been members of the SAA for a few years, according to President Judy Schmidt, who stated their art can be viewed in most of the SAA’s art shows.

Their works can also be purchased at Historic Fort Steuben’s Visitor Center during the holiday nutcracker season.

Wright and Beatty will present a workshop for SAA members in March. Area residents are invited to take part in the workshop, as well.

“The SAA is quite proud of these two sisters,” Schmidt commented. “We want to congratulate them on their awards.”