Top Five Artist No-No's for Submitting to Exhibitions

How do you interact with various artist opportunities and calls for entries? How do you think galleries, publications, museums, and other art venues view you, the artist, who has submitted to their opportunity? Many artists assume they are simply a number in a database when it comes to open calls for entries and juried exhibitions. In fact, this is usually not the case, and there are some steps you can take to avoid having a bad reputation associated with your name, or, oppositely, get in good.

"Do you mean that an artist's reputation affects his/her acceptance to the exhibition?" No. Well, not exactly. If the opportunity follows a "blind" juried style, then your reputation and name will have nothing to do with your acceptance. However it may affect your potential for awards and honors, additional opportunities, and extra promotion of your work -- all of which typically happen outside of the jurying once your name is revealed. This is where it's good to know the etiquette of email, phone, and written correspondence with the potential opportunity you plan to submit to.


Here's the top five worst things you can say/do to mar your artist reputation when submitting to an artist opportunity:

1. "Can you just do the application for me? Here's my images and resume." - This is basically like saying, "I don't have time for your silly art opportunity, but I just know you'll like my work so much that you'll want to help me any way you can!" While you truly may too busy to figure out the application yourself, that is not how the opportunity host will view you -- it will come across as laziness. If you really don't have time for preparing the application materials required, then this may not be the right opportunity for you, or at least not the right timing in your life. An alternative could be to hire someone to do it for you.

2. "I just submitted my application, and now I'm emailing to tell you about my great upcoming exhibition somewhere else!" If the call for entry opportunity requested your resume, then put that awesome upcoming exhibition information on the resume. If the opportunity did not ask for a resume, then you probably shouldn't send this kind of information as it can be seen as annoying and irrelevant to the call for entry at hand.

3. Adding their email address to your monthly email newsletter list. This happens so frequently that it seems a daunting task to spread the word to artists everywhere about this big no-no. If the person/museum/gallery/magazine did not sign-up for your list, then at least ask before you add. Sometimes they'll say yes, sometimes they'll say no, but asking permission eliminates the likelihood that your message ends up in the spam box harming your newsletter's reputation further.

4. Not saying "thank you" when accepted. Congrats - you received the acceptance letter, meaning your work was found to be a good fit for this opportunity! Why not say "thank you" to the opportunity host and/or jurors? A simple reply to the acceptance email is sufficient, and words of gratitude go a long way to keeping your name in good standing for potential future opportunities that are not juried. Not saying thank you is actually noticed and makes the opportunity host wonder, "Aren't they excited?" or worse "They seem rude, unappreciative, etc."

5. Being a jerk when not accepted. As disappointing as it is and as much as you believe your work was the best fit for this opportunity, don't be rude to the opportunity host because of your so-called "rejection letter." Trust me, that tiny little email with "@#$%! you!" written in it will definitely get your name remembered, but not in a positive light. Avoiding the temptation to lash out can prove more beneficial in the long run. Instead of relieving your anger by writing that email, try writing your feelings in a journal, creating a new piece of art, or sharing your disappointment with a friend.

Art in Music -- When Lyrics and Compositions are Inspired by the Visual

Ahhh... art and music -- the two go together so well! Musicians have always found ways to incorporate visual art with their music through disc covers, posters, videos, and merchandise. But what about art in music? Some musicians have more than a passing fancy towards fine art -- some are visual artists themselves, collectors of fine art, or art historians.

Presented today are the first in a series of reviews of music that references the field of visual art in some manner. Today's theme -- "Odes" -- shares a few of the songs that are an homage to specific artworks, artists, or art movements. This is only part one of this theme, and only the first of seven blog posts about the topic of art in music in general!

Nat King Cole -- Mona Lisa

"Do you smile to tempt the lover, Mona Lisa? Or is this your way to hide a broken heart?" coos Nat with his beautiful voice and classic style. This song is a short, but well-done ode to Leonardo da Vinci's mysterious painting of Mona Lisa and to the overall mysteriousness of women.

Peter Gabriel -- Fourteen Black Paintings

This dramatic ode to Mark Rothko's black paintings speaks of the political and internal struggle of humanity. The chilling musical composition, in addition to the simple poetic lyrics are very thought-provoking. "From the pain come the dream, From the dream come the vision, From the vision come the people, From the people come the power, From this power come the change."

The Nields -- Georgia O

With a "Lillith Fair" attitude and folk-rock style, The Nields sing about the songwriter's muse, Georgia O'Keefe. Speaking of a strong emotional connection to an artist long-dead before the songwriter's lifetime, this song reminds me how powerful art is.

King Crimson -- The Night Watch

Opening with a long instrumental intro, the lyrics then provide a detailed description of Rembrandt's style and ideology, perhaps even describing a specific painting (but I haven't yet figured out which one.) Boasting of beautiful violins and guitars, this ode to the artist also gives hopeful to the future through it's lyrics and melodic tune.

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Stay tuned for more "Art in Music" posts...

In researching the musings of various musicians about the topic of visual art, I found songs mentioning including art are somewhat limited in quantity, yet profoundly inspiring and memorable. I chose to sort my findings according to a few common themes and then present a review of each group on the following schedule:

• ODES (Part 1) to specific artworks, artists, or art movements -- June 8 (4 songs)
• LOVE songs, some hopeful and others confused, referencing art -- July 6 (6 songs)
• HUMOROUS songs about art or specific artists -- August 3 (5 songs)
• BIOGRAPHIES of specific artists' lives -- September 7 (3 songs)
• ODES (Part 2) to specific artworks, artists, or art movements -- October 5 (4 songs)
• BALLADS of heartbreak, using art as a metaphor -- November 2 (3 songs)
• REALISTIC narrations of pain, hope, struggle, and life, presented with references to art -- December 7 (5 songs)

Artist Opportunities -- Especially for Emerging Artists

There are lots of opportunities out there for every kind of visual art. Which ones are best for emerging artists? Sometimes it can be quite confusing. We've tried to help reduce the confusion by offering a listing of various kinds of opportunities specially geared for or accepting of emerging artists. Check out the calls for artists listing here>>


We do this by personally hand-selecting and reviewing hundreds of opportunities each month. We update the listing about once a week and we only post those that we think an emerging artist may have a good chance at being accepted for. These include contests, juried exhibitions, publication opportunities, artist-in-residence programs, festivals, and more. We scour some of the more elusive sites that may not have the advertising budget to promote in Art Calendar or other large directories that charge a fee for listing. Because we do this, you'll find opportunities here that you may not easily find otherwise.


Not sure if an opportunity is a good fit for you? Do a little research to help you decide. Read reviews of previous exhibits or participants. Be bold, and email those artists to find out answers to your questions. Be even bolder and ask the venue itself! You may be surprised that you'll get a nice response, or you may get no response at all. This should be part of your judging criterion for participation. If a venue has no time to answer your question, you will probably not enjoy working with them even if they accept you for the show.


Best wishes for your career! And remember, it's ok if you're not accepted for every opportunity. Galleries and other venues do have limited space and specific goals which your art may simply not fit at this time. Keep on trying, with research and a good professional attitude and practice you will find the right spaces for your work!

Beginnings

The beginnings of things are always interesting. Sometimes you think, why haven't I done this already? Other times you think, is this really right for me?


Well, in the case of this blog, it's been long overdue. One of Visual Overture Magazine's primary goals is to be a resource for emerging artists, emerging collectors, and galleries or venues interested in displaying emerging art. This blog will seek to provide meaningful insight to hot topics related to the world of contemporary emerging art.


How will our blog be different than others similar in theme? The Visual Overture Magazine blog will act not simply as a space to vent opinions, but will be a resource for knowledge, current events, how-to tips, and cutting edge ideas/technologies related to the ever-changing scene of emerging art. This may include reviews of emerging art exhibitions and events, discussions on the role of art in society, useful advice on artist career goals and methodologies, and news tips on exciting developments related to the field of art.


As we progress, we will invite guest writers to join us in this pursuit, and in the meantime we invite your comments and suggestions. Short and brief, this now concludes our opening statement. Welcome to the Visual Overture Magazine blog!