No Entry Fee Bee Sting for Me
Every day I search for open calls to art shows and every day I’m confronted with the words ENTRY FEE. Showing artwork is one of the most important yet elusive things on my checklist for success. However, paying money to have a limited number of my artworks shown to a pair of eyes for who-knows-how-long with no guarantee of being selected is simply wrong and not for me.
photo by flickr user autan
An ‘open call’ or ‘call for artwork’ is simple and works in a few ways. The most typical way is that an organization says, “Hey, we’re looking for artwork that revolves around the issue of Love. Please send us a check for $30 and up to 5 images in the form of slides via snail mail by August 15. Our expert panelists will review the submitted artwork and select 30 artists for this year’s Love Fest”. If the open call is for a competition, then “Love Fest’s expert jurors will award $5000 in prizes”.
BogusArtFair.info states it best: “Artists are urged to give careful and serious consideration before entering any competitions and juried exhibitions or shows requiring an entry fee”.
In the past few years, I’ve transitioned from blindly entering paid open calls to researching the creative team behind each call. I’ve experienced the mental and financial strain of chasing these calls. No one describes the unfortunate inner workings of a paid open call scam better than Charles Eicher in his blog post, ‘Los Angeles Center for Digital Art’ Scam, including this threat from the open call’s organizer. In the past few months, I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find success in the limited number of free open calls. I’ve directed my energy into navigating the Web for open calls that resonate with my artwork and explain more conceptual goals of the exhibition, rather than a hoard of pretty paintings.
There are exceptions to my entry fee rule. Occasionally an organization will give the money it receives to a cause I like. For example, The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) sponsors an art auction each year. I’ve participated in the past, and my payment was to donate an artwork to auction. Another exception is an entry fee given by a good place like 3rd Ward in Brooklyn. The member-based artists’ co-op is a grand resource for local artists and beyond. The large building encompasses an exhibition space, a computer cluster, woodshop, artist-taught classes, and more. To know my money will go towards a) a place that gives back to the artistic community, and b) the chance to be seen by a panel of gatekeepers I respect, is worth it, even if I’m not a member.
The latter example of 3rd Ward’s effort continues to make me smile when they ask for my personal website link and a PayPal confirmation number via E-mail. In 2009, everything should be done electronically to save paper and time, as well as the chance to include more artwork. Whether it’s subliminal or not, I rest easier knowing that I sent my entire body of artwork instantly rather than three slides and a check via snail mail.
I’ve been stung by the entry fee bee a few times. I’ve learned from my personal experiences that paying to play does not give me any exposure, sell any artwork, or help my career plan at all.
In a way, is paying thousands of dollars for a BFA or MFA the ultimate entry fee bee sting? I don’t think so, since it puts me on a contemporary journey up the art world ladder and provides a host of other opportunities both in and outside of the art world. But I’m not about to get into the pros and cons of a college education, especially ITTET. Egad, my MFA pursuit is an entirely different post to come soon!
