Watercolor Art Society - Houston

48th Annual International Watermedia Exhibition

Prospectus

March 2025

Registration opens: September 14, 2024

Registration closes: January 11, 2025, 11:59 pm MST

Artist Notification:  January 31, 2025

Deadline to Receive Shipments:  February 27, 2025, 3:00 pm CST

Awards and Gallery Reception:  March 2, 2025, Sunday, 3:30 pm CST

Gallery Exhibition Dates:   March 4, 2025 to March 29, 2025

Juror and Judge:  Stephen Zhang

IWE Director:  Lynn Rodriguez

IWE Contact Info: iwe2@watercolorhouston.org or (713) 942-9966

Printable IWE 2025 Prospectus: https://watercolorhouston.org/International-Watermedia-Exhibit

Prizes: $10,000 in cash awards

• 1st Place $2,500
• 2nd Place $2,000
• 3rd Place $1,500
• Ten Merit Awards of $150 each
• Odette Rubin Memorial Award $1000
• ET Kraycirik Award $500
• Margaret Scott Bock Award $500

WAS-H Signature and Elite Signature Status

Signature Status and Elite Signature Status are honors awarded to WAS-H members whose artworks have been selected for multiple years' participation in the WAS-H IWE.  Signature artists have exhibited their work in three IWEs; Elite Signature artists have exhibited their work in five or more IWEs.  Once designated, artists may add the credential "WAS-H" after their signature to indicate their status. To be eligible, an artist must be a WAS-H member at the time their artworks are submitted into the IWEs, however, there is no requirement for an artist to retain ongoing membership in WAS-H.  A "Signature Status Artist" retains that honorific for life regardless of membership. 

Juror and Judge Stephen Zhang  

Stephen Zhang is an accomplished water media artist and design professor with a passion for creating large-scale watercolor paintings that showcase his fluid, expressive, and empathetic style.

Born in China, he graduated from Luxun Academy of Fine Arts and received his MFA from the University of North Texas. In addition to his successful career as a design leader, Stephen is currently an assistant professor in Communication Design at the University of North Texas.

Stephen's artwork has received widespread recognition both nationally and internationally, winning awards from prestigious exhibitions organized by the American Watercolor Society, the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, Watercolor USA, American Illustration, and the Chinese National Art Exhibition, among others. Two of his paintings are currently exhibited at the US Embassy in Equatorial Guinea. His work has been featured in publications such as Watercolor Artist, American Art Collector, Art Connoisseur, and International Artist. 

Application Requirements

PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE PROSPECTUS CAREFULLY SO AS NOT TO RISK DISQUALIFICATION 

Printable IWE 2025 Prospectus: https://watercolorhouston.org/International-Watermedia-Exhibit

For questions about the exhibition and/or entry, 

Contact IWE Director: Lynn Rodriguez at (713) 942-9966 or iwe2@watercolorhouston.org

Please submit early, so we can assist you with any technical issues in the entry process. Submissions and payments are done via CaFÉ.

Eligibility Criteria

Entry Details:

• Participant Age: Must be 18 years of age or older.
• How to Enter: Artists must submit their artwork digitally through CaFÉ. File type: jpg, 1200 pixels or greater on the longest side, max 5MB. Images must be cropped to exclude mat, frame, and any background.
  • Set up a CaFÉ profile at https://www.callforentry.org
  • Direct link to register: https://artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=13977
• Number of Entries: Up to three (3) works per artist may be submitted. Only one (1) work per artist may be selected for the exhibition. Not all artists will have works selected.
• Entry Fees: 1 entry = $40; 2 entries = $55; 3 entries = $70. Gold Level WAS-H members enter for free. Entry fees are nonrefundable.
• Creation Date: Only artwork completed on or after January 1, 2023 is eligible. Artworks may not have been accepted in previous WAS-H Annual Members Exhibit (AME) or previous IWE.
• Originality: Artwork must be original and created without instruction. No works will be accepted that were created in a class or by other media instruction (Book, DVD, YouTube, etc.) or in collaboration with other artists or Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• Reference: Reference photo may be used only if the photo was taken by the artist. No artwork created from photos taken by others.
• Water Media: At least 80% aqueous media including: watercolor, acrylic, gouache, egg tempera, casein, ink, metallic and luminescent water-based paint.
  • Unacceptable Media: oil paints; water‐miscible oil paints; oil pastel; oil stick; pastel; colored pencil; impasto; fabric; digital media or digitally enhanced images; multiple edition prints; sand; glitter; gold or metal leaf; collage from printed materials, newspaper, magazines, etc.; photography; reproductions; 3D media.
• Enhancements (Acceptable media up to 20%): soft pastel; watercolor pencils; charcoal; graphite; wax accents and resists; water-based monotypes and monoprints; embossing; No digital, copies, giclee, photography, prints, or fabric. No glitter, gold or metal leaf.
• Collage: Collage images must be 100% created by the artist and at least 80% aqueous media on archival materials. Commercially printed collage materials are not permitted.
• Acceptable Surfaces: Watercolor paper; toned watercolor paper; Yupo and similar synthetic papers; paper coated with water‐based varnish and gesso (Gessobord™); Aquabord™; Claybord™; watercolor board; illustration board; textured paper; rice paper.
  • Unacceptable Surfaces: Gallery wrapped or stretched canvas; canvas paper; composite paper with embedded materials; wood or composite panels; or other coated wood or composite panel; unmounted canvas or other fabrics; Tyvek; DuraLar; metal; glass.
• Surface size: No smaller than 9 inches (or 22.86 cm) and no larger than 44 inches (or 111.76 cm) on any side in the vertical or horizontal direction. No diptych, triptych, etc. Submission dimensions should not include the frame and/or mat. Must be specified correctly on entry or subject to disqualification.

Invitation, Notification, Acceptance and Shipping:

All artists will be notified whether their artwork is selected by the Juror to participate in the Exhibition.  If your artwork is selected by the Juror to participate, you will receive an invitation.  Congratulations!  Promptly accept your invitation, pay the handling fee on CaFÉ, pack your artwork and ship it to Houston.

• Notifications: Sent on 1/31/2025.  All artists will be notified whether their work is selected. Artists whose works were selected will receive an invitation by email. Please double check your spam folder or login to CaFÉ.
• Acceptance deadline: Accept by 2/11/25. Invited artists must accept or decline their invitation. Lack of response will be treated as declining. Declining forfeits eligibility for gallery participation and awards.
• Agree to online exhibition: Invited artists must agree to participate in the online exhibition as well.
• Selected artwork: Selected artwork must be the same as the digital picture originally entered online.  No substitutions or alterations. Registration information (price, title, entry size) cannot be changed.
• Handling fees: $25 for hand-delivered work, $50 for shipped work; Paid on acceptance through CaFÉ.
• Shipping: 
  • Shipping period: February 11-27, 2025.
  • Instructions will be provided in the invitation.
  • Mailing address is: 1601 West Alabama Houston, TX 77006.
• Shipping Fees: Artists are responsible for all shipping fees and must include pre-paid return shipping labels. 
• Delivery Times: Deliveries are accepted Tuesday-Saturday, 10 am-3 pm.
• Delivery deadline: February 27, 2025. Paintings received after the deadline will not be in the Exhibition.  No exceptions. 
• Intake: Intake and compliance check on February 28, 2025. Works are uncrated and closely examined for compliance with Prospectus regulations. No substitutions or remedies are allowed. The Screening Committee and IWE Director make the final decision regarding the disqualifications. Disqualified works are shipped back to their artists. 
• Location: WAS-H determines the location for hanging and placement for all artworks. No special requests. 
• Exhibition: 3/4/25 – 3/29/25 Artwork must remain on display in the gallery for the entire duration of the Exhibition. Removal of artwork prior to closing will result in penalties assessed by WAS-H and disqualification from entering future shows. 
• Awards: 
  • US residents will be paid via check. 
    • US residents who receive $600 or more in awards will receive a Form W-9 and a Form 1099 in January 2026 for tax purposes.
  • Non-US residents will be paid via wire transfer. 
    • Entrants who are not US residents will receive a Form W-8 BEN (which will be emailed with instructions for completion). Withholding tax will be made from awards in accordance with US tax laws and any existing tax treaty with the entrant's country of residence. No withholding is required on proceeds of a sold painting that was painted outside of the US. 

Framing, Matting, and Hanging:

• Framing: Artwork must be framed unless it is a cradled panel.
• Cradled panels: (such as Aquabord™ or Claybord™) must have professionally finished sides. Flat panels without a frame or cradle are not accepted.
• Mat: A mat is recommended (but optional) and must be true white (no off-white or natural shades). No colored mats or liners. Mat cores must be white. No double mats.
• Frame material: Must be wood or metal, in a plain, simple (not ornate) style. No frame embellishments (such as carving, edging, accents, distressing, texture, graining, etc.).
• Frame color: Black, white, brown, gold, or silver are only allowed colors. Must be one solid color. No bronze, copper, or other colors. No tone changes, mottling, patterns, metal leafing, or obvious graining.
• Frame thickness: No thicker than 2.0 inches (5.08 cm) measured from front to back and side to side.
• Stability: Frames must be stable, sturdy, and undamaged. Artwork in loose or damaged frames will be disqualified.
• Hanging: Frames and cradled panels must be wired across the back with sturdy wire appropriate for weight. No sawtooth hangers. Wire must not show when mounted.
• Weight: Framed artwork weight should not exceed 45 lbs.
• Protection: Artwork must be protected by Plexiglass for framed work or varnish for cradled panels. No glass allowed. No artistic embellishments on frame, mat, or plexiglass.
• Exhibition Ready: Artwork must have a professional presentation and be ready to hang when received by the gallery. Wire must span back of frame with a slight slack and not show when mounted.

Sales:

Sales of paintings during the Exhibition will be handled by WAS-H on behalf of the artist. Interested buyers may call the gallery at 713-942-9966 or send an email to admin@watercolorhouston.org. 

• Pricing: Art price listed includes the frame and 25% paid to WAS-H. The sales price is specified in the initial entry in CaFÉ and may not be changed after entry. For not-for-sale (NFS) artwork, specify $0 (zero) as the price in CaFÉ.
• Discount: WAS-H reserves the right to negotiate up to a 10% discount to close a sale.
• WAS-H Donation: WAS-H receives a 25% donation for paintings sold during the Exhibition.
• Sales tax: Sales tax is charged for all sales regardless of artworks’ country of origin. Sales tax is 8.25%.
• Sold paintings: Sold paintings may not be removed from the gallery until the Exhibition closes.
• Shipping of sold paintings: Artists are responsible for coordinating with buyers the logistics for delivery including any handling and shipping costs.
• WAS-H is not responsible for shipping paintings.

Disqualification Checklist:

 IWE Calendar

WATERCOLOR ART SOCIETY – HOUSTON

1601 West Alabama Houston TX 77006
Gallery: 713-942-9966
HOURS: Tuesday - Saturday, 10 am - 3 pm

For general questions about the exhibition and/or entry Contact IWE Director: Lynn Rodriguez at iwe2@watercolorhouston.org

WAS-H Membership information: https://watercolorhouston.org/Membership-Application