The Putnam CT Fine Arts and Crafts Festival will be held on June 22nd and 23rd, 2024, and will feature the work of 50-60 fine artists/artisans from New England, New York and New Jersey, including handmade, original painting, pottery, photography, jewelry, glass, and so much more. This is an outdoor festival and we encourage seasoned or new artists/artisans who create high quality work to apply. Visitors can enjoy live musical entertainment, and the grounds are just a short walk from Downtown Putnam with more local award-winning: shops, galleries, and numerous fine restaurants. 

                               Small town.  Big on Arts!

The mission of our host, the Putnam Arts Council, is to increase, support and promote cultural development and access to the arts, culture and heritage in order to enhance the quality of life and economic vitality of Putnam. 

Dates and Deadline:

Application Requirements

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:

All applications must include Artist name, medium, description of work, price range of artwork for sale, and 5 images. Of the 5 images, one MUST be of a booth shot, an image of a fully set up fair-ready booth.

Rolling Acceptances: Applications should be submitted by March 31, 2024 Applications will be evaluated and accepted starting with the opening of the call until we reach our capacity of 60 artists. The call is open to all artists 18 years or older.

Artists will be notified by email upon acceptance. Accepted artists will be required to pay $125 booth fee upon their agreement to show at the festival by May 20th, 2024. Available payment options will be made apparent at time of invitation.

Booth Space:
Each artist will have an assigned booth space, marked out by the Town. Upon arrival, artists will be guided to a drop off spot and then parked. The space allows for a 10’x 10’ canopy.  All boxes and packing materials must be hidden from view. Artists are responsible for keeping their area clean, including during tear down at the end of the day. Trash barrels will be available. 

The grounds will be open to exhibitors Friday, June 21, 12pm-7pm and Saturday morning, June 22, 7am for setup.  Booth setup must be complete by 9:45am on both Saturday and Sunday.  Exhibitors cannot start the breakdown of their booths until the end of the event at 4pm.

• Size: 12 x 12 space will be provided for a 10’ x 10’ Canopy, with space in between each setup.
• Payment: $125 due at time of acceptance to festival
• Town of Putnam provides only the physical space for booths.
• Exhibitors are responsible for providing tents, tables, or canopies for displays. No electricity is provided, generators are NOT allowed. There is no WIFI.
• Tents and all materials must fit in the assigned booth space.
• White tents are preferred.
• Artists must provide their own booth signage.
• The venue has an irrigation system.
  • You will NOT be able to drive to your location.  There will be volunteers and carts both motorized and non-motorized to help assist getting your materials to your booth
  • Tents may NOT be anchored to the ground with spikes. Tents must be weighted down and artists must provide their own weights.  Vehicles cannot drive on the lawn.

Rules:

• All work must be designed and crafted by the applying artist.
• All products for sale must be original or part of a limited edition, hand-crafted, and well-executed.
• If part of an edition, pieces must include the number of the piece and the total number of prints in the edition.
• The Putnam Arts Council will not accept commercial goods for resale, kits, imported or consigned goods.
• We ask that all your work be family-friendly and not exhibit anything that could be interpreted as racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, or otherwise offensive.
• We reserve the right to ask an exhibitor to pull any merchandise we feel could be construed as offensive.
• The festival is drug-free. No smoking is allowed in or near artists’ booths.
• Acceptance is non-transferable. Booths cannot be split.
• All artworks shown must be for sale. All prices must be clearly marked.
• Artists are responsible for paying sales taxes in accordance with Connecticut Department of Revenue Services. CT Sales Tax is 6.35%

Eligibility Criteria

Work must be categorized into one of the following:

Drawing                  Fiber
Folk-art                   Glass
Jewelry                   Leather
Metalworking          Painting
Paper                      Photography
Ceramics                Printmaking
Woodworking         Mixed Media
Other

• Please note, if more than 50% of the work you’ll be displaying is jewelry, please apply in the jewelry category.
• Artists may only exhibit works in the media they were juried into. Items must match type & quality submitted for jurying.
• You may apply in up to 2 categories, but please only submit one application per category.
• We reserve the right to change the designated category if we feel another category better represents the work in your application
• Artist(s) must attend the entire Festival.
• No work by non-juried artists is allowed.

Media Coverage:
A comprehensive promotional campaign will incorporate many different forms of media including radio, periodicals, banners, posters, online listings, and social media. The Putnam Arts Council has a Facebook and Instagram page which we invite you to join/follow, and request you share the event with your community. By submitting an application to this festival, you are agreeing to allow use of your images in promotional materials.

Jury Process:
Jurors review and score every application based solely on the photos and artist statement submitted. As such, it is highly recommended that you use high quality, current images of your work. The process is blind; the jury does not see names, websites, whether you’ve previously exhibited, etc. Applicants will be reviewed as received and will be notified on a rolling basis until the maximum amount of participants are chosen. Artists will be notified via email and results will be posted at our website
www.putnamctartscouncil.com.

Waitlist Policy:
A waitlist will be developed based upon jury scores. Exhibitors placed on the waitlist will be notified via email. If cancellations are received, the waitlisted exhibitor will be contacted and given the opportunity to accept/decline the invitation.

Weather:
This is an outdoor festival and will be open rain or shine. All exhibitors are expected to have their booths up and open during the entire day. Exhibitors should be prepared to protect their work in the event of rain or wind. If the weather turns severe, the Putnam

Arts Council reserves the right to close the show for safety reasons.

Refunds/Cancellations:
100% of booth fee will be returned upon written receipt of cancellation before May 22, 2024. After May 22, NO refunds will be given.