Are Juried Art Shows Good for Artists? Strategies for Navigating Group Exhibitions
How does an artist determine success? If you’re working alone in the studio, doubt is often a companion. “Am I making good work? How does my art appear to others?” We want to know we are doing well, and often that knowledge seems to be found in the opinions of others. And if you want to sell your art, there is added incentive for getting your art out in the public eye. This is a good thing! Art is meant to be shared, creating conversations between the artist and the viewer as we share our inner world with the world around us.
About Juried Shows
As an artist, I want to find opportunities to share my work, and one venue for doing so, since I am not represented by a gallery and don’t have a body of work for a solo exhibition, is to enter group and juried art shows. These events invite artists to photograph and submit their art for consideration to be included in the show. There are small, local events where your art can show with local artists, and there are international exhibitions that include some of the world’s best-known artists. There are online-only events, and many more of them this year than there ever were before, and these are convenient as you get to skip the costs and stresses of packing and shipping valuable artwork. And these events often offer cash prizes, opportunities to earn membership with exclusive art societies, solo shows, publications and other perks that can be won, should your art be chosen for an award.
I’ve been entering juried shows for over twenty years, although because I live in northern Canada, I have chosen mostly to enter local shows and avoid the costs of shipping my work. I’ve won a few awards, and been passed over for selection many times. I served as a juror for an event last year which taught me a lot about what goes into selecting (or rejecting) art for exhibition.
Are Juried Shows Worth the Effort?
As artists, we have a superpower in desiring to look at the world in new ways. We don’t like limitations, and when someone tells us there’s one “right way” to do things, often our response is instinctively to rebel and try to find another way. So there’s a side of me that really challenges the notion that entering juried shows and seeking to earn memberships in prestigious art societies is the way to success as an artist.
Is entering and winning art shows the key to artistic success?
How much does that rejection email actually say about my art? Is it truly not that good, or do other factors come into play?
I don’t want my opinion of juried shows to be simply sour grapes; that I don’t regularly get chosen or win awards, so I’m writing off these events as useless. There are some really wonderful benefits to entering these shows. But I want to realize that that feelings that come with a rejection - feelings of unworthiness, shame or discouragement because my art wasn’t chosen again - these feelings don’t paint a true picture.
Advantages to Entering Juried Art Shows
you challenge yourself to work to a higher level when you know you’re competing
you gain growth through the observation of what other artists are doing and how the work is juried
you have the opportunity to network with other artists
being chosen looks good on your resume to those in the know
(slim) chance of prizes and recognition within the art world
Disadvantages
it’s an emotional roller coaster, rejection is painful
jurors’ choices are subjective
costs of entry fees and shipping can add up and must be factored into your pricing
pressure to meet deadlines for entering and shipping
not a guarantee of sales or business growth
The Biggest Disadvantage
One reason to avoid juried shows for a time is if you struggle with self-sabotage. This is something I used to do: I would set my sights on a goal for my art and the criteria of “I will be successful when…” and immediately upon reaching that goal would set upon another goal just out of reach. If you have an idea that you will be satisfied when…or you will know your art is good when…and you keep moving the goalposts, juried shows are going to enable you to continue to perpetuate that “never good enough” mindset, and you will never get off the emotional roller coaster. Step back and make art just for you. Find deep satisfaction in your work when you are alone in the studio, and you will be stronger to weather the ups and downs of submission, rejection, acceptance.
My Conclusion
I’m not going to stop entering art shows. But I try to protect my heart. I know that if my work isn’t chosen, I will feel discouraged and beaten down for a while, and this hurts my creativity. There’s a little less life in my studio following a rejection, and I can only take so many of those. And when my social media is pinging with artists celebrating a recent win, I have to remind myself that there are many more artists who are quietly making a good living with their work who have never won a major award and are unrecognized by the art world.
Art is a crazy business, isn’t it? You can be good without anyone knowing you’re good. Some would say there are those who make bad art and earn millions. Sometimes it seems that you can choose to make art that people love, or be loved by the art world, but not both. So with these kind of anachronisms in the business, the conclusion I think we all have to come to is the same one that should drive our art; you do what’s best for you. Artists should never have to feel bound to force themselves into an expectation-driven mold to succeed when our gift is our individuality.
Do you enter juried shows? How do you handle rejection? Leave a comment below!