What is DownEast?
The DownEast National Juried Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition is in Pitt County, North Carolina. The DownEast outdoor sculpture year-long exhibition is a joint exhibition among Pitt County Arts Council at Emerge, ECU Student Galleries, City of Greenville, Town of Winterville, Town of Farmville, Town of Ayden, Wahl-Coates Elementary School for the Arts, and the Greenville Museum of Art. 

Entries and Fees
All entries are to be submitted digitally through www.callforentry.org (CaFÉ). Please retain a copy of the information you provide on the entry form.

If you have not registered previously with CaFÉ, setting up your portfolio is free. CaFÉ requires that all images conform to a specific format. Before you begin the entry process, review CaFÉ’s instructions and tutorials. For technical assistance with your entry, please see https://www.callforentry.org/cafehelp.phtml, or contact cafe@westaf.org.

Each artist may submit up to 6 entries. Artists are required to submit 1 entry for a fee of $15, with the option to submit 5 additional entries at $5 each. There is a limit of 6 entries per artist.

Each entry will receive the jury’s decision in a separate email, via CaFÉ,  during the month of December 2023. It is the artist’s responsibility to monitor their CaFÉ account where all submissions will be listed and marked either invited or not under “My CaFÉ Entries”.

It is the sole responsibility of the applicant to note each artwork's application number, as this identifier will be used to announce the accepted works. Please retain a copy of the information you provide on the entry form.

Entries will be active on the CaFÉ website beginning October 1, 2023, and must be completed by 11:59PM MST on November 15, 2023.

Outdoor Exhibition Information 
This exhibition is open to all artists ages 18 and up. All entries must be submitted digitally. Work should be large scale to fit one of the sculpture pads in various locations throughout Pitt County, NC. Sculpture pads range from 4’x5’ to 10’ round in diameter. Artists must be available to install and remove their own work. They may have some help from the entity where the sculpture is placed, but this is not guaranteed. Liability insurance may be asked for in the City of Greenville’s location. All work must remain on exhibit from the end of February 2024 through the end of February 2025. Work must be able to be exhibited outdoors and utilize materials that are exterior grade.

Notifications 
Work chosen and accepted for this exhibition will be notified during the month of December. Arrangements and contracts will be send from Holly Garriott, Executive Director of Emerge Gallery & Art Center, Home of the Pitt County Arts Council. 

Drop Off and Pick Up
Installation and removal of accepted work will be coordinated by the exhibiting entities. Aid with installation may be offered by the exhibiting entity. Contracts for a one-year term will be conducted with each entity and the chosen artists typically for one year from the last week in February 2024 until the last week in February 2025.

Prizes
For those sculptures chosen, there will be honorariums awarded of $1,200 each.
Additional award prizes include:
1st Place: $1,500
2nd Place: $750
3rd Place: $500

Insurance 
Work will be insured by the presenting entities. Liability insurance is required by the City of Greenville’s site; however, the other sites will be covered by the presenting entity. Work will be insured only for 70% of the sales price and only for the exhibition dates (does not include installation and removal). Insurance value must be a realistic value and may be questioned. Proof of similar sales will be asked for if necessary. Consent to reproduce for publicity, catalog, or educational purposes is assumed unless specifically reserved in writing. Submission of entry constitutes agreement to all conditions.

Meet the Juror

Joni Younkins-Herzog is a sculptor living in Athens, Georgia and a former sculpture professor with a Master of Fine Arts from Indiana University. Younkins-Herzog’s work has been featured in exhibitions across the country, including New York, Fort Lauderdale, San Francisco, the “Art Prize” in Grand Rapids, Michigan; internationally in Pabianice, Poland; Cajabamba, Peru, and Sang Arts Village, Ghana. Her sculptures combine beauty with absurdity often blurring the lines between reality and fantasy. Utilizing many mediums, she lures the viewer in with luscious colors and materials, to contemplate anxious content in proximity.

Application Requirements

Please submit a minimum of one sculpture, with materials, dimensions, and value. Please note that artworks valued more than the insurance maximum may not be selected. 

Eligibility Criteria

This exhibition is open to all artists ages 18 and up. All entries must be submitted digitally. Work should be large scale to fit one of the sculpture pads in various locations throughout Pitt County, NC. Sculpture pads range from 4’x5’ to 10’ round in diameter. Artists must be available to install and remove their own work. They may have some help from the entity where the sculpture is placed, but this is not guaranteed. Liability insurance may be asked for in the City of Greenville’s location. All work must remain on exhibit from the end of February 2024 through the end of February 2025. Work must be able to be exhibited outdoors and utilize materials that are exterior grade.