Call for Artists: Eastern Shore of Maryland

Chestertown RiverArts – Open Juried Fine Art Show – September 2013

Registration open: May 15 – June 29

The former Chestertown Arts League’s Annual Open Juried Art Show had a run of 64 shows through April of 2012, bringing together fine works of art from regional artists in Eastern Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania. Following the merger of the Arts League with Chester River Artworks to form Chestertown RiverArts, the new organization is proud to continue this tradition with the first annual Chestertown RiverArts Open Juried Fine Art Show. The new show is scheduled for September 2013 and will be mounted in RiverArt’s new galleries in downtown Chestertown, Md. All artists residing in the United States and Canada are eligible. The Juror will be David Grafton of Easton, Md. and the Judge will be Mary McCoy of Centreville, Md. Chestertown is an historic county seat on the Chester River, a major tributary of the Chesapeake Bay. The town has a vibrant arts community and is the home of Washington College and the tall ship, Sultana.

Registration for the show will be done on-line via the RiverArts web site, www.chestertownriverarts.org, and images of work will be submitted via email at registration. The registration period is open May 15 through June 29 and accepted works will be announced in early August. Mediums of works acceptable for the show include: all painting mediums on paper, board and canvas including pastel, mixed mediums and collage; drawings and hand-pulled prints; photography; and sculpture and other 3D works. The work must be original and completed in the past 24 months (i.e. May 2011 or later). Please refer to the RiverArts web site for show news, the detailed call for artists and registration instructions.

Prizes awarded for any medium include “Best in Show” and “Juror’s Choice” and several “Awards of Excellence” and “Honorable Mentions”. Five medium specific prizes will be given for: watermedia painting; painting in oil or acrylic on canvas or board; pastel; photography; and a work in drawing, hand-pulled prints or mixed media. There will be one all-mediums theme prize, “Best Representation of the Eastern Shore.” This is a long-standing tradition of the CAL Juried Show and rewards work evoking the rural nature and/or bay and river life of the Chesapeake region. Total monetary prizes will exceed $2400.

Show Juror David Grafton is an internationally-known painter with works in collections around the US and in Canada, Japan and Europe. He is best known for his evocative, painterly landscapes and seascapes and for his bold abstracts. He was juried in to the highly competitive 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012 Plein Air Easton Competitions and has been an active teacher, muralist and juror.

Show Judge Mary McCoy has an academic background in Studio Art and has written extensively on art for many publications including the Washington Post and most recently as an art reviewer for local publications. She is also an accomplished sculptor specializing in found object installations and as a collaborator with her husband Howard McCoy. Their collaborative environmental sculptures have been featured annually at the Adkins Arboretum near Ridgely, Md. since 1999.

Refer questions to Show Organizer Rich Hall at rwhall@pitt.edu or 410-928-5012 and visit the RiverArts web page for updates on the show. The new RiverArts galleries are found at 315 High Street (suite 106) in downtown Chestertown, Md. Regular gallery hours are: Wednesday through Friday 11am – 4pm; Saturday 9:45am – 4pm and Sunday Noon-3pm.