The contest – Local artist Christopher Turner in the running for Art Basel show

Chance struck Christopher Turner at the right time.

Turner was surfing the Internet in late August when he saw an ad for the Artisan Series, a national art contest sponsored by Bombay Sapphire in partnership with the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation.

The question on the ad read, “Who will be the next big name in visual arts?”

Turner, the current Kress Gallery curator and artist in residence, couldn’t pass up the opportunity to put himself in that tier of artists, but he had only two days to quickly do his homework on the competition and submit his best work.

The Artisan Series works like this: official judges will decide which submissions will be shown in the semifinal round, which includes shows featuring pieces submitted within a 100-mile radius of cities such as Houston, Detroit, Washington and New Orleans. At the same time, fans can vote for works they like via Bombay Sapphire’s Facebook page.

Winners of the online and judge tally will get an opportunity to show off those works at SCOPE Art Fair in Miami during the Art Basel event this December.

“To be exposed to that caliber of buyers and that gallery would be amazing,” Turner says.

For the contest, Turner submitted two abstracts, “Ribbon of Life” and “Untitled,” and two other themed pieces titled “NYC 1,” which depicts the Brooklyn Bridge, and “Polo No. 1,” an 80″-36″ painting of a young man playing polo.

Three of the contest curators voted “Untitled” to the semifinal round, and the work will be shown at New Orleans’ L’entrepot Gallery Saturday, Oct. 5.

If he has a good showing there and the votes keep coming in, Turner could get into the final round and show off his work in Miami. He says that being in the semifinal round is already a statement in itself, but the Art Basel exhibition would be a new step in his career.

“To be affiliated with something like this is a pleasure,” he says. “Art Basel is the Mecca, though. To be recognized on a national scale, carving out that new road and making new doors open, it would be amazing not just for me but for the state as well.”

Voting ends Nov. 8, and there is a limit of one vote per person per entry per day. For more information, click here.