Submitting Art to the Mayor's Art Show

Thursday, May 19, 2005

The Mayor's Art show is a unique art show experience that coincides with Eugene's summertime Eugene Celebration. Held at the Jacob's Gallery in the Hult Center, the Mayor's Art show is comprised of approximately 50 pieces of art picked by three judges, with the Eugene Mayor being given the honor of picking out a favorite art work to offer a gift to, hence the name of this exhibition.

So, it's an art show... what's the big deal? Most art exhibitions jury possible artworks from slide images. This is a practical move that allows an artist to be considered for an event in a different geographical region than where they live, without risking that the artwork they wish to be considered becomes damaged in shipment to and from the juror. Slides offer highly detailed images and frame an art work wonderfully in an isolated space that is not cluttered, and showcases the art in question flatteringly. The downsides to this process is that slides can be costly and time consuming to have made. Having slides made require that you have a high quality image of your artwork, a process that usually requires the aid of a profesional photographer. This also requires that the artist enter the world of maintaining a slide database of all of their artwork: entering images of new work, maintaining a stock of multiple images of one piece, and keeping track of where their slides are in the art world. And did you gather yet that this isn't all cheap?

What the Mayor's Art Show does that is different is that it requires entering a piece in person on one intake day. This means that the actual artwork itself is judged- not an image of it. This process tends to be friendlier to amateur artists, who often don't have a slide making protocol established for their artwork.

However, the scheduling of the event itself means it is not flexible. There is one given day that art can be turned in to be judged. Two weeks later comes another single day in which the art is to be picked up. That can be a bit tough to schedule during the summer time- however the community atmosphere is well worth it. As an artist, you won't be alone in this process. There will be other artists at your elbow, finding out the same information as you: did they make it in to the Mayor's Art Show?

If you don't make the call? There is also the option of entry into the illustrious Salon de Refuse, the doppleganger, no not quite... the ecentric Aunt of the Mayor's Art Show.

The Call

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Tina Rinaldi of the Jacob's Gallery just called me to ask if I would like to be a juror for this summer's Mayor's Art Show! This came as quite a surprise and I am flattered.

I've volunteered for the Mayor's Art Show for many years ever since my first rejection of an art work seven years ago. I've had artwork accepted two years and rejected four years. I've experienced the highs, lows and laughs involved in submitting art to an event this size. Having been a volunteer has given me a glimpse of what is involved behind the scenes in putting on this event. I have sat at the acceptance table with an artist helping fill out the required insurance paperwork allowing their chosen artwork to be displayed safely. I have also been with the crew who hands back unaccepted artworks. In this role I have been afforded a sneak peak of the manifestations of the inner working of fellow artists: from dejection, anger, destruction of the rejected artwork, to mirth, zen-like acceptance, and also relief.


Working with past Mayor's Art Shows has allowed me the opportunity to play juror myself on the sly. Handling my crumbled paper of noted artworks, I've wandered through the accepted works experiencing my own range of reactions similar to those of the rejected artists.

I am both apprehensive and overjoyed to see my art journey continue in a direction more behind the scenes of gallery events. I would like to share with you my reactions on what I expect to be an exciting ride as a juror for the 2005 Mayor's Art Show.