Showing Your Work: part 4 - organizing your entries

Now that you've chosen which kinds of shows to enter (quilt, art quilt, fine art) how do you keep track of it all? You've seen the list of shows that feature art quilts. You're pretty sure you know which ones appeal to you. Now what? Well there are myriad ways to get your act together - here is how I do it. I like to see the big picture with my lists - all the dates on one page. I'm very visual. Waaaay back when I wrote an article about the topic for Quilting Arts Magazine, called Where and How to Show Your Artwork. April/May 2007.

I kept a notebook back when I was in the swing of things. Front page and pack page had two lists, one with shows by entry dates as seen here. This one is printed right from the list on my website. The other described below.

First - make a list of shows you are thinking of entering in order of shipping deadlines Make sure you note entry dates and which are postmarked and which are "received by." Note any other pertinent entry info such as size requirements or expiration dates (my personal pet peeve!) I also noted prized money, commission fees, or anything out of the ordinary such as a live jury (in which you are required to send your actual quilt in for a second jury round.) Oh! Don't forget the virgin quilt rule!!! If any images of your piece filter out anywhere, blogs and your Aunt Martha's Picasa page included, you are OUT!

Second - choose which quilts might go to which shows and note them. The reason my first list if by shipping window is so I can make absolutely sure that shows don't overlap. It's a BIG no-no to enter a quilt in a show, have it accepted, then to withdraw it because it already got into an overlapping show.

Third - when a quilt is accepted into a show I put the shipping date on my calendar in big bold letters. My worst nightmare is to forget to ship a quilt. Funny story. As I was packing down one show I had curated I noticed that there was a quilt missing. As far as I knew, it had never arrived and somehow I had missed seeing that. Immediate panic. Had the quilt been lost in the mail for months? I took a big gulp and called the artist. She had completely forgotten about the show and hadn't sent it. I was SOOOOO relieved. At the same time, I had to laugh because that is so like something I might do.

Inside the notebook:

Entry forms.

• Sleeve protecter for copies of entries I had sent out. I wrote big and bold on the top corner of the form the names of the quilts.
• Sleeve protectors for accepted entries. I wrote (again) big and bold the shipping deadline and filed them in order.
• Sleeve protector for entry forms of quilts that were currently out.
• Sleeve protector for quilts that had come back in.
• Page with all the vital stats for my quilts: date, size, price, insurance info.
• Page for each quilt with a sow history and awards, yes - I also fear I'll enter the a quilt in the same show twice. I have a sieve for a brain.
• Sleeve for appraisals and their copies.

Of course all of this information can be kept on your computer now. (Then again, when is the last time YOU backed everything up?) It's getting easier with digital entries and burning a CD or mailing off a jpg is much easier than sending slides.

Robbi Ecklow's article Use Calendars to Keep Track of Your Show Submissions in Quilting Arts Magazine  February/March 2010 brings things quite up to date. In it Robbi shows you how to use any calendaring program (she uses ical) to list the entry deadlines as well as shipping and show dates.

The Goddess of the Last Minute Feels Rejected

The very first person to befriend me when our family spent a lovely two years in Chicago was the wonderfully witty Robbi Eklow. On my very first visit to the area she picked me up for a few hours of bead hunting and laughter and I've counted her as a friend ever since. I have enjoyed following her career as an artist and author and highly recommend her latest book, "Goddess of the Last Minute."

One of my all-time favorite writings of hers is her response to the rejection letters we all receive. She has graciously permitted me to repost it in it's entirety for you pleasure. Pull it up next time you receive a rejection and you'll be smiling again in no time!

What if quilt shows offered you the chance to write your own acceptance/rejection letter? Or what if they wrote letters saying what they REALLY meant, instead of those nice ones that usually say how hard it was to choose just a few quilts out of all the excellent ones that were sent to them?

Here are a few of my offerings:

• Your work has been accepted into our quilt show, please peel yourself off the ceiling at the earliest convenience.

• Your work has been accepted into our quilt show, please follow the enclosed directions for shipping it to us. And thanks for the box of homemade cookies. The jury was impressed.

• Your work has NOT been accepted into our quilt show, please proceed to the nearest quart of Mint Chocolate chip icecream and dig in.

• Your work is fabulous, we can't believe we didn't notice this before and have you in our quilt show every year. In the meantime, we are looking forward to receiving your current entry and possibly putting it on the cover of our book.

• We declined to accept your work in this year's our quilt show, due to the butt headedness of our jury. Although we could not convince them to recant, we have decided never to have them again, and next time will ask them what they think of your work BEFORE we invite them to jury.

• We're sorry, we cannot accept your work into our quilt show this year. In fact, we doubt we'll ever accept your work into our quilt show. Perhaps you should consider learning to operate a pottery wheel. We're keeping your slides in an effort to prevent you from inflicting your poor taste on another jury.

• We are declining your quilt entry this year. Whatever made you think we would consider a quilt using puce and chartruce in the same quilt? We are enclosing a free coupon for a color class at your local community college.

• Puleeze! Your work looks just like (insert famous quilter's name here). Haven't you had an original idea in the last ten years? Not that (insert famous quilter's name here) has, but that's beside the point.

• We are so sorry to have declined to accept your work into this year's quilt show. Your work is so incredibly amazing, the workmanship divine, NOTHING else submitted can stand up to it, why the WHOLE show would have looked shabby compared to your work. Since we do not want to hurt the rest of the artist's feelings, we have decided not to show them up by including your work.

• Dear Mrs. Eklow, even though technically, your husband's 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado DOES qualify as a quilt (three layers:metal, upholstery and padding, held together by bolts) we feel that the shipping costs of the traveling show would be prohibitive. We did consider using the trunk as a storage area for the REST of the show, but we can't find a garage big enough to house the car, and it's reported gas mileage of 5 gallons to the mile makes that idea inefficient. That said, we do admire your efforts to find a way to get rid of the vehicle once and for all without hurting your husband's feelings.

• Dear Mrs. Robbi Joy Eklow: Unfortunately for you, we aren't taking your quilt/quilts into our show this year. Mrs. Robbi Joy Eklow, we had over 750 submittals, but we can only show 25 quilts. However we do appreciate the $40 entry fee you sent, please send another $50 if you'd like a ticket to the opening night. We need to cover our expenses. Mrs. Robbi Joy Eklow your work was one of the outstanding entrees, and we're not just saying that even though this is obviously a form letter.

• Dear Mrs. Eklow, we can't accept your quilts into our multimedia show this year. We prefer the avant guarde work we've been showing for the past 40 years and will continue to reserve our exhibition space for those artists who've shown their work for that period of time. And this year, we'd appreciate it if you'd decline to send a rebuttal letter to our rejection letter. We don't care if you think those fabric blankets of yours deserve to hang next to or in place of the lovely oil paintings of dogs playing poker.

• Please return the enclosed postcard along with a check for $50 to receive a ticket to the opening night reception. We know you'd like nothing better than to spend an evening fawning over the artists who DID make it into our fabulous show. Drinks will start at 9pm, $10 for wine, $15 for margaritas. And we've got those cute little hotdogs floating in barbeque sauce. $3

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Showing Your Work: part 2 - rejection

It's going to happen sooner or later. The envelope or the Email that says, "sorry - out of luck" arrives in your mail box. You followed all of the directions in the prospectus to the letter. You dutifully researched the venue, past shows, the jurors. You have the best possible images of your artwork and yes, you did send in your best work. And still - you don't get in.

Malachi's Promise
rejected from half of the shows entered  (mostly abstract art gallery type shows)
received a "Best of Show" at a local quilt show

What does it mean? Why do you feel like a failure? I discussed the jury process and the many reasons work is rejected from shows in my last post on this topic in case you missed it. What being rejected does NOT mean is that you are a failure as an artist. If you go into a blue funk because you did not get into a show you need to examine why. Do you think everyone will reject your work if it did not get in to one show? Do you think that all of your work is unworthy?

Failure can be a friend if you are willing to learn from it. Easier said than done but if you can learn to see failure as one more step towards success your life will be easier - and happier. And you will be growing!

First off - are you entering venues appropriate for your work? I'll talk more about this next week. A cutting edge and provocative piece might not be appropriate for a traditional quilt show and a traditional Baltimore Album isn't going to make it in a Soho gallery.

Spill
never juried into a show quilt but shown in several art galleries

Also, the higher the quality of the show that you enter, the more likely it is that you will be rejected simply because of the higher number of applicants. Quilt National is what many of us Art Quilters call "our favorite charity." It has an overwhelming number of entries compared to the number of Artworks that it can accept. It is also one of the most respected showcases of the Quilt as Fine Art that there is. A hardcover catalog is published every year and the show travels to respected venues. It is still on my list of "hope to get in before I die" shows so I continue to send in work and take my chances.

Second - are you pinning all of your hopes on one piece? As a serious artist you want to be continually creating. You need to build up a body of work. (I'm preaching to myself here!) If you think this one piece is the best you will ever make than you have stopped progressing. Try to create enough work that you can have several pieces out there at the same time if entering shows is a path you wish to follow.

Third - take an objective look at both your photographs and your work. If you have someone whose opinion you trust, ask them for a critique. Use this as an opportunity to learn and to improve. The work just might be fantastic and the photography impeccable. It still never hurts to examine and to find areas for improvement.

Here is a lovely blog post about entering shows by Elizabeth Barton. It includes a conversation with a juror about why some pieces were accepted in a nationally juried show. Well worth reading.

Circle 3

juried in to only one show - where it sold

Tomorrow morning I'll give you a treat - Robbi Eklow's wonderfully witty answer to rejection letters.

Showing Your Work: part 1 - the jury process

It takes a lot of courage to put your work in front of a judge or juror, or so I've been told. I've done it many a time and paid good money for the privilege. Why? Because I want people to see my work. Some artists might create their work entirely for their own pleasure, happy to let the art live in a closet forever, but I haven't met them yet. Most of us have a message to send with our art - even if that message is as simple as "smile."

Do I find it scary to submit to the jury process? No - but not because I think my art is great or because I always get into the show. This year I've been accepted to two out of four of the shows I've entered. Part of my "courage" is having seen enough jury processes that I know what is involved. Part of it is that I am able to emotionally let go of my work once it's done. Let me explain.

In a juried show artists submit either images or the actual artwork, and a juror chooses which out of all the submissions will be in the actual exhibit. Jurors are usually professionals in the art field; established artists, gallery owners, professors, curators.

You fill out a form, you pay a fee. It's not unreasonable. It costs money to advertise the show, to staff the exhibit, to pay the juror. Most of the shows I've worked with just barely break even.

What happens on the other end? Imaging receiving hundreds of files, some of which might actually have followed the guidelines in the prospectus. You've already answered what feels like hundreds of Email questions and helped people format their files or simply restated what is already written in the entry guidelines.

All of the entries are now organized into a slide presentation and you have prepared numbered sheets for the jurors. The most common process that I've seen goes like this: A full and detail image for each entry is shown on the screen either side by side or one after the other. Most of the time the jurors will be shown a quick run through of all of the entries so that they can get an idea of what they are looking at. If the show has a theme the jurors might be told what it is and to please try to find pieces that adhere in some way to that unifying idea. Sometimes the jurors are given free reign to choose whatever pieces they think will make a wonderful exhibit.

The next run through is usually silent but takes more time. Each juror looks carefully at each piece and simply writes down "yes" or "no." At the end of this run the jurors compare notes and any piece that has unanimous rejections are, well, rejected. Harsh? Not really. There are many, many reasons pieces are rejected that have nothing to do with the quality of that particular piece. 

I'm sure the most frustrating reason for rejection is poor photography. When the jurors cannot see the artwork clearly it is impossible to judge it. Having anything at all showing in the background of the photograph is distracting. I remember on photograph in particular where the piece was pinned to a piece of bright purple foam core set on an easel. You could see half the living room and the jurors couldn't tell if the purple was part of the quilt or not. Truly, if you present your work in the the most professional manner possible it will make a huge difference. Your work IS your best effort is it not?

Now things get difficult. After the rejected images are deleted from the pool the jurors once again view the pool, this time either meticulously rating each piece, or conversing with their colleagues to come to an agreement on the final selections. There is a good bit of cajoling, campaigning, and compromising that goes on here.

Reasons for rejection at this stage? Numerous. The theme could be "Trees" and they reject the artwork depicting fishes and candy canes. The pool of entries might lean towards abstract and one photo-realistic piece, no matter how spectacular, just isn't going to create a cohesive show. Perhaps these particular jurors love politically challenging pieces whereas another set of jurors might shy away from them.

You see, it really is simply the luck of the draw. There are so many factors that go in to the process that there really is no guarantee that you will be accepted into a show even if your work is truly wonderful. There are things you can do to raise your chances of being accepted.

1 - Research the show - what type of artwork has been exhibited in past shows?
2 - Research the juror - find out what other shows the juror has put together and what they look like. What kind of artwork does the juror make if he or she is an artist.
3 - Take the best possible photographs of your work possible. Neutral backgrounds. Good light. Focused!
4 - Follow the instructions on the prospectus to the letter! Do not expect the organizers to resize your images or accept late entries.

Here is a short list of articles and a book that can help you with the tasks above.

Shoot That Quilt by Andy Baird and Holly Knott
A wonderful tutorial on how to digitally photograph your quilt including plans for building your own nifty light stands. Yes, it can be done!

Digital Essentials by Gloria Hansen

This wonderful book clearly explains how to prepare your digital files for entry.

Judge and Jury: what to expect when entering art shows by Annie Strack
A very good overview of the entire process and a bit of a tutorial on how to choose your shows and maximize your chances of acceptance.

A list of art-quilt shows to enter compiled by yours truly
Listed by entry date, includes title, website/prospectus, show dates and shipping windows.

And finally - cut the apron strings. Let your babies grow up and venture out into the world on their own. Make enough work that all your hopes and dreams are not riding on one piece. Put your heart and soul into the work while you are creating it and then release it. A rejection of your work from a show is NOT the same as a rejection of you as an artist.

Look for more on this topic over the next month or two. I'd love to hear your experiences, opinions, and suggestions. Have you been involved in a jury process that worked differently? How do you think it can be improved?

Back In The Saddle Again

When an artist travels and teaches an awful lot of studio time disappears. At some point it gets to you and you have to figure out how to make it work. I'm living and learning as I go an have decided that I need - no - NEED to get a whole new body of coherent work made this year. Enough that I can start making proposals for solo shows.

In the meantime - I've entered my first juried show in years. No expectations about getting in - it just feels good to have done it! I think 2003 was the last year that I really had my work out in circulation at various quilt and art venues. Then I took a "baby sabbatical," wrote a book, wrote a bunch of articles, and started teaching live and on-line and well. There you go. Poof. No more time for making art - aside from samples.

I took a few days off of my current writing project and finished up a piece that had been in process for - well, years.

Years and years ago I filmed a segment for Home and Garden TV's "Crafters Coast to Coast." Fun? Definitely. But later I decided I really didn't want to finish twelve of these books so I took the step-outs (you have to have multiples of each stage of the process) and sewed them all together.

I started the quilting then did a few other things (see list above.) Onto the shelf it went. I finished the quilting on my new HQ16 some time last year. Finally I got brave and just took out the Shiva Oil Sticks and went to town. So there ya go. Finished is a good feeling.

DANCE

40" x 48"

Well - finished enough for photography.

I still need to sew the facing down on the back.

Oh - and maybe add some beadwork too.

shhh. don't tell.