“I shall write Miss Winters of my favorite air castle, that of owning a fine country home in the East, a dairy farm, have her live with me and then bring children who are poor to spend the summer and perhaps whole year with us.  We can work for their benefit in many ways, while I can always have a model to draw.” – Hill-Stead Museum’s founder, Theodate Pope, Diary entry, July 2, 1886 [age 19]

The phrase “air castle” appears just once in Theodate Pope’s diaries, as she emerges from adolescence and is on the brink of womanhood, while still living in Cleveland, Ohio and before she enrolled in Miss Porter’s School in Farmington in the fall of 1886. It was a defining period of her life that would eventually bring her family to this central Connecticut village. The diary passage foretells what her life would become.

Theodate’s girlhood daydream of living on a farm in the east became a reality with her design of Hill-Stead for her parents in 1901. Once a 250-acre estate rooted in the principles of the Progressive Era, the concept of “gentleman farmer” and experimental agriculture became a model dairy farm, and later, under her “gentlewoman farmer” guidance, continued to thrive. As Theodate matured her long-ago idea to bring poor children to live with her evolved into her becoming guardian to three orphaned boys who she raised has her sons. Theodate’s philanthropy toward her adopted state and hometown, in part, grew as well from her teenaged musing.

“Air castles” is the theme of this year’s exhibition.  What is your dream, musing, fantasy brought to life in your artmaking?

Application Requirements

Hill-Stead Museum will only accept submissions through CaFÉ before the submission deadline of March 28, 2025. CaFÉ is an online application and jury management system for calls for entry. Visit www.callforentry.org and click on “Help” and follow their directions for submitting. 

Guidelines for Artwork:

• Up to three works per artist may be submitted.
• A maximum of one work per artist may be selected.
• All two-dimensional work must be framed and/or ready for installation with hanging hardware, wire, or d-rings already installed on work and the entire work must not exceed 60 inches in any dimension. The work cannot exceed 50 pounds. Pieces without hanging hardware will not be included in the exhibition.
• Three-dimensional work cannot exceed 48 inches in any dimension and should be accompanied by a pedestal/or be ready for display as a freestanding or self-containing work. The work cannot exceed 100 lbs.
• Hill-Stead Museum will not accept installations due to space constraints.
• The Museum prohibits glitter, wet paint, sharp objects, open flames, balloons, spray (perfumes, hairsprays, etc), dangerous chemicals, weapons, pressurized containers, plants or animals (alive or dead), hazardous materials (explosive, flammable, or perishable), decaying materials (mold or insect infestation), or anything deemed harmful to the Museum’s collection. If there are questions about this please contact Melanie Bourbeau, Senior Curator, at bourbeaum@hillstead.org or (860) 677-4787, ext. 122.

Selected Works: Selected works must be delivered ready to hang/display. Artworks considered unsuitable for hanging/presentation will be refused. Curatorial staff reserves the right to refuse an artwork that is misrepresented through documentation or is not the piece selected by the juror.

Shipped Artwork: The deadline for receipt of shipped artwork is May 7, 2025. If work is not at Hill-Stead by May 7, 2025, we reserve the right to not include it in the exhibition. Any artwork being shipped must include return postage/shipping fee that must be received before the end of the exhibition (June 29, 2025). In the case of inadequate or nonexistent return postage, works will be considered abandoned property and disposed of as the Hill-Stead sees fit. All artwork should be packaged in a manner that will allow for the materials to be re-used for return shipping. Otherwise please include materials for return packaging. Please do not ship artwork with packing peanuts.

Liability: Hill-Stead Museum will not be responsible for any damage whatsoever, before, during, or after the exhibition. No works will be released without proper identification. Any work not picked up by the dates noted above will become property of the Museum and will be considered abandoned property and disposed of as Hill- Stead Museum sees fit.

Sales: We encourage the sale of artwork; however, work does not have to be for sale if selected for the exhibition. Hill-Stead will not deduct a commission for any sale of work in the exhibition. Hill-Stead will not serve as a third party for sales; we will provide artist contact information to any individuals inquiring about purchases.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility: National and International artists 18 years or older with current Hill-Stead Museum membership. Original works accepted in all media.

Membership: You must have a current Hill-Stead Museum Membership to be eligible to submit your work. If you are not a current member, the Museum reserves the right to remove your work from the jurying process with the loss of entry fees as a result. For membership information, please contact Megan Olver at olverm@hillstead.org or (860) 677-4787, ext. 181 or go to hillstead.org and see “SUPPORT” on the homepage before accessing CaFÉ.