Ok, if you follow this blog regularly, you may be getting sick of the Rejection theme... Summing up, this will be the last post on the topic as a part of this series.
Artists I interviewed emphasized certain themes: the need for confidence in your own work, strong support systems to keep you engaging your art with the world, and proactive decisions about what to enter.
All the interviewed artists stressed researching potential venues. This works fine for open call exhibitions and, sometimes, commercial galleries., but certainly there are some venues to which you simply can’t apply. Much of the art world is based around invitational and curated exhibitions. To have your work seen at, say, the Kemper Contemporary Museum in Kansas City, your work must first be exhibited at respected alternative art spaces or commercial galleries nationwide. For institutions like this, unsolicited proposals are discouraged. Curators are doing their own research. The image above is from the jury of the French Salon, during which jurors hit rejected works with their canes! Then, of course, they were marked with the red rejected stamp.
I point this out to emphasize that you cannot control all aspects of your career. However, you can make choices that position you to reach dreams for your artwork. Make steps by consistently engaging your art in the world—researching, yes, but also taking the leap.
I am still interested in talking to artists about their strategies, support systems and confidence builders. Keep going! Please find your own way to evade too much discouragement from factors outside your control!
Artists I interviewed emphasized certain themes: the need for confidence in your own work, strong support systems to keep you engaging your art with the world, and proactive decisions about what to enter.
All the interviewed artists stressed researching potential venues. This works fine for open call exhibitions and, sometimes, commercial galleries., but certainly there are some venues to which you simply can’t apply. Much of the art world is based around invitational and curated exhibitions. To have your work seen at, say, the Kemper Contemporary Museum in Kansas City, your work must first be exhibited at respected alternative art spaces or commercial galleries nationwide. For institutions like this, unsolicited proposals are discouraged. Curators are doing their own research. The image above is from the jury of the French Salon, during which jurors hit rejected works with their canes! Then, of course, they were marked with the red rejected stamp.
I point this out to emphasize that you cannot control all aspects of your career. However, you can make choices that position you to reach dreams for your artwork. Make steps by consistently engaging your art in the world—researching, yes, but also taking the leap.
I am still interested in talking to artists about their strategies, support systems and confidence builders. Keep going! Please find your own way to evade too much discouragement from factors outside your control!
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