The panel at the Arts Festival conference "The Verdict is in: Best Jury Practices" had on its panel Christine Berthiaume from the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Tara Brickell from the Cherry Creek Arts Festival, Stephen King of the Des Moines Arts Festival and Nancy Musser who consults with art fairs on jury practices for Zapp, was well worth the time.
The candidness of the panel's remarks was refreshing and stripped away any concept of "other." We are on the same team, artists and art show directors. We all want the same thing: an excellent art festival.
Some of my notes:
- 35-40% of applicants come in in the last two days. Makes it difficult to review to make sure everything is in order. Maybe 80% the last week. Half in the last 24 hours.
- If you are waiting to hear from other shows — still get the application started so it will be ready as soon as you are free to make a decision. Do you want to do it quickly, or slowly so you’ve got everything done?
- Indoor booth/outdoor booth — — suggested that if you are applying to an indoor/outdoor your booth shot should reflect the show you are applying to.
- Suggestions for Artists who are doing all gallery shows, and so don’t have a booth shot: put together a display shot from what you have and set it up to replicate as closely as possible what you think your booth will look like at the show PLUS note (if there is a place for it) that you don't have a booth yet, new to the art fair business
- Make the shot look like an artists gallery, the booth shot keeping in mind what will be attractive to the viewer. E.g., don’t you send a booth shot that shows your work on the ground.
- As the rounds of the jury continue, it is for the jurors like “peeling away the onion”, down to the very best work.
- Don’t give the jury any reason to kick you out of the show.
How they choose jurors and run their jury:
- We network with other shows to find out who they have used that were good.
- Work to figure out how they cab balance it over all the disciplines
- Ask in the artist survey for suggestions.
- Look for peer jurors who have national experience.
- 25% first round; 25% second round; then discussion.
- Publish the name of the jurors ahead of time.
- "We spend more time jurying our show than we are open as an art festival," Cindy Lerick from St. Louis Art Fair
- Show award winners, invited artists. Review all images by category. Then score by category. Include peer jurors in the jurying images so they can see their work amidst their peers.
- Quota per category, no — Cherry Creek. Judge based on excellence of work.
- No categories - Des Moines - sorted by Zapp application ID#’s. Choosing a balanced show, put your work into a small category, leveling the playing field — not choosing a quota.
- We review entire show the night before with the jurors. Next day start scoring. First round 1-7, no 4’s. Next round show of hands.
- Best non-art entry was images of goats and the art was goat cheese - Tara Brickell from Cherry Creek
A couple of important tips (yes, you've heard them before, but there is a reason for that):
- Invest in professional images.
- Attend a jury, if at all possible.
