Blog

Open Letter to Art Show Staff

Dear Art Show Personnel:

Admit it, even the best most forward thinking of you from time to time get lost down the slippery slope of what the jurying process means. Often it's presented as sort of a competition, and believe me, it sure can come across feeling that way from the artist's point of view. But it is healthier for all involved to take a broader view.

As an artist who has participated in many top shows I like to think of this process less as a competition and more as a jury's own creative project; building a beautiful array of excellence. Thus those that aren't included aren't identified as less or inferior but only as better suited to a different collection. See the difference? Better yet, feel the difference?

Respectfully,

Every Artist Who's Submitted an Application to Your Show

A Puzzling Process

The buzz is beginning to be generated for this season's shows - the includes, the excludes, the who's-ins, the who's-outs.....and I just wanted to go on record as saying I handle not being selected (AKA "Being Rejected") by a jury as simply my current body of work not being the perfect piece to the puzzle they're assembling. This frees me up to stay positive about my work and eliminate any need to hold a grudge for any reason. Heck it even lets me celebrate all who do get into a show!

Here's the weird thing about me and my art, last year I was surprised by three awards in three wonderful top notch shows - and while it felt simply amazing to have been so honored, the fact is I don't get it. How can one mindfully, competently and intentionally created body of work possibly be 'judged' as better than another? Isn't this all just a matter of taste?

Oh, sure, some artists create better booth presentations, have better slides and are superior business people when it comes to packaging their ideas, but on some pure level I just can't wrap my head around Art as a Competitive pursuit!

The Real Includes - the Genuine Prizes

Besides these prizes given to me presumably by my peers, I don't think there's any way I can plan nor prepare to repeat any of those this year. You know what winning situations I am looking forward to recreating this summer though? The ones where children came into my booth and spent their own birthday money on an actual piece of art. Yep, happened two times. I wrote about it here.

How do You Philosophize the Jurying Process?

I, and anyone who reads this post, would love to hear your thoughts on this too. I know there's a treasure trove of thoughts and ideas embodied by the various users throughout this site; I'm looking forward to reading some alternate views!

I used to do Howard Alan Shows.   He has “regulars” who do many of his shows.  I was one of them.  He  and Debby knew my work well.  They know the work of their regulars.   Some weekends I would call about a show I hadn’t even apply for and he would say, “Sure, I’ll find you a space”.  I liked Howard and Debby, and though their entry fees were high, they put on many good shows.  But then they implement a $15 jury fee for each and every show we applied for.   That’s when I quit applying.

When I started doing art festivals in 1981, there was no such thing as a jury fee.  Then, in the mid-eighties I saw my first one.  It was $5.  Until then, shows funded their own juries to assemble the best mix of artists they could.  Now, 25 years later, shows treat the jury fee as a revenue stream, a cash cow from hundreds, even thousands of artists they know will never get anything but a “Dear John” letter.  Good shows today get more than a thousand applications and charge upwards of $40.  Do any of us really think it costs $40,000 to jury an event?  The bottom line is we are often funding shows in which we do not participate.

Two years ago, when I was accepted to Main Street Fort Worth I was rewarded not only with a $20K show, but they reduced my entry fee 10% because they got so much money from an overwhelming  number of jury applications.  Why should we, the few who got into the show, be subsidized by the many who were rejected?  Why not reduce next year’s jury fee by $5 so all applicants could benefit?  Why not reduce the jury fee to what it actually costs to jury the show?  Then charge the lucky ones who actually do the show enough to cover the costs.  Seems like a common sense approach.

I recently sent a $25 jury fee to The Des Moines Arts Festival through Zapplication and went off on a road trip to do shows in Memphis and Pensacola.  When I got home and caught-up on my email, I found  one from Stephen King the director of The Des Moines Arts show.  In it, he said he thought my digital photography should be moved from the photography category to the mixed media category.  The email said if I agreed I should respond by a certain date.  The date was long past.  So, I thought, since I had not responded, at least my application would be juried in the right category.  Right?

Not so.

On my next visit to Zapp, I found my category had been changed to Mixed Media!  Then I got an email from the show giving the statistics of the applications.  In photography there were approximately 100 applications.  In mixed media there were over 150.  Needless to say, I recently got my “Dear John” letter from Mr. King.

What did I get for $25?

Here is what I wrote on the Des Moines application to describe my work in 200 characters or less:

“Images of wit & humor from my imagination. By blending digital files in Photoshop, I work to emulate traditional darkroom photography. All work is produced to archival standards.”

Here are several statements taken directly from the Des Moines application:

In addition to the rules of exhibiting, the following guidelines/restrictions apply to the jury process:

5. Photography may only be submitted for jury in the photography category.

Photography – The process of capturing images that begins with a camera lens, then printing the images, by chemical or digital means, onto a surface. The photography category includes traditional film photography, hand colored images, emulsion transfers and digital photography that has not been excessively manipulated to achieve results beyond what could be done in a traditional darkroom.

Mixed Media – Includes any combination of a variety of materials to create an original work of art.

In 31 years of applying to thousands of shows, I’ve never applied in any other category unless photography was divided  and there was a Digital category.

Back in November when I got Mr. Kings email, I replied that I thought he should put me back in the right category and that his email intimated I wouldn’t be switched without my permission.  Recently, I emailed him asking for my jury fee back “ for cause”.  I didn’t get a reply back then and I don’t expect I will now.

Just what is it we get for our jury fee?

When you work hard with special care or effortlessly from some kind of pure place of personally unique concentration then the art you are creating is precious and unparalleled in value. That this is true whether or not a juror helping assemble a show thinks it's a good fit or not into that show doesn't take away from any of this value. Ever. Can't happen. Good work reflects unique vision. And unique vision operates quite beyond the financial realm. Mind you, most of us can't afford to lock into pure Vision and pay our bills so some commercialization or popularization of our artistic voice has to happen in order for it to relate to the hearts of the people who will eventually connect with and even buy our work.

That's ok, that's just us interpreting our unique Vision for the outside world. Part of the education process we artists offer the world at-large.

Ain't no jury gonna tell you otherwise. What's yours is yours and rejections can't take that from you.

Don't absorb whatever energy you think might be contained in a non-invite to ANY show. Chances are it's not the integrity of your work, your images, or your booth that done your chances in this go round - more likely it's just a plethora of entries bouncing off the eyes of well intentioned jurors who must stay somewhat mindful of the potential of the local populace to embrace the work they're choosing. As much as not being included into a show shouldn't hurt is as much as being included in a show shouldn't make you feel good!

Don't absorb any of that noise. None of it's healthy. Stay pure to your Vision, your process, your optimism and know that what happens next is perfect and right - no matter what.

Figure these shows are all moving targets and the best way to catch the ones you need are to:

• apply to multiple shows with an open mind
• stay true to you vision but
• be willing to grow and adapt when doing so serves you
• Big shows aren't always big shows and neither are little ones always little ones

When you don't get into the shows you hoped for log into this site to semi-privately blow off steam so you can go back to your drawing board and design or re-do the work you feel reflects the world you care to illuminate. Because no jury's decision is going to help you do that, yea or nae. That's not their job. That's your job. And you do it well. You do it so well you're unstoppable!