The Alaska Watercolor Society was formed in 1974 as a not-for-profit organization to help promote the knowledge and understanding of professional watercolor painting in Alaska. The Society sponsors an annual juried watercolor exhibition that is open to all artists 18 years and older living in the United States.
 

Alaska Watercolor Society 43rd Annual Juried Exhibition

Conoco Phillips Gallery, Alaska Pacific University (APU) Grant Hall

4101 University Drive, Anchorage

August 4 – August 30, 2017

2017 Prospectus Calendar

June 2             Entries must be received by midnight MST on this date.  (Submission                        information below)

June 14            Public entry review at the BP Energy Center, Anchorage 7:00 PM

Week of July 3rd Notifications e-mailed for accepted paintings and posted at                                                      www.akws.org.

Aug 1             Out of town artists should arrange delivery to AKWS agent by this date.

Aug 3              Paintings delivered to APU Conoco Phillips Gallery

Aug 3             Show is hung at APU gallery by Jannah Atkins and AKWS volunteers

Aug 4             Opening reception 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm at APU Conoco Phillips Gallery

Aug 8             Juror selects the awards

Aug 10            Juror’s lecture, BP Energy Center, 900 E Benson Blvd, Anchorage

Aug 30            Exhibition closes 6pm

Aug 31           Artists & Watercolor society agent and participating artists take down                      paintings from the Conoco Phillips Gallery in Grant Hall - 11 am - 2 pm

Juror:  KATHLEEN CONOVER, AWS-DF, NWS, ISEA-NF,TWSA-MA

 Master Artist, Kathleen exhibits her work, juries exhibitions, gives demonstrations, and teaches in-depth workshops. She has been juried into more than 100 exhibitions, receiving national and international recognition for the vision, innovative techniques, and fearless expression that give rise to her unique designs. Painting with openness to her subject matter, she is guided by intense observation and deep personal reflection. The result is rich symbolic layers of literal and figurative design.

Painting from an early age, Kathleen was influenced by teachers and artists in the fertile environment of Southern California's prominent artists, museums and galleries as well as early international travels. She studied undergraduate fine arts at San Diego State University, finished her Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Washington in Seattle and earned her Master of Arts degree from Northern Michigan University. Continued study with American master watercolor artists over the next decade enriched her depth, understanding, skill, and personal style of painting.

Kathleen Conover's current involvement in the growing international watercolor scene includes invitations to exhibit, judge, and demonstrate in China, Turkey, France, Belgium, Thailand and Greece. She has been honored as one of the 40 international master watercolorists invited to exhibit at the first watercolor-exclusive museum in Qingdao, China, the "Birthplace of Watercolor". Global travel continues to influence her award winning paintings and inspires her work toward her lifetime pursuit, "... to be a better painter".

Eligibility: Open to all artists 18 years or older, living in the United States. Paintings must be primarily aqua media (watercolor, acrylic, casein, gouache, egg tempera, water based ink, and water soluble crayon or pencil) over any flat, two dimensional surface, matted and framed under clear acrylic or glass. Water-soluble oil media are not allowed. If pastel or paper collage (created by the artist) is used, they must be in conjunction with aqua media and the aqua media must be the dominant element. Work is limited to two entries per artist. Works previously shown in an AKWS juried exhibition are disqualified. Works must be original.  Paintings done under instruction are allowed, if the choice or arrangement of subject matter is the artist’s, not the teachers, and the teacher has not painted on the painting. Minimum image size 8X10 inches, maximum image size 22X30 inches, less than 2 years old.

Submission information: All submissions will be through CaFE.org,(www.callforentry.org). Image must be correctly oriented (vertical and horizontal). Show the full picture without frame or mat. Digital photo must faithfully reproduce the original painting. The nonrefundable entry fee for one or two paintings is $30 (both members and nonmembers). Payment can be made by credit card through CaFe.org or by checks payable to Alaska Watercolor Society mailed separately to P.O. Box 90714, Anchorage, AK, 99509. Please don’t send cash. Digital entries must be received by June 2, 2017. No entries will be accepted after this date.

 Framing: Artists whose entries are accepted must submit paintings matted and framed under clear glass or acrylic (plexiglass). Acrylic “glass” is required for shipped pieces. Mat surface must be white or off-white. Colored inner mats are acceptable up to a maximum width of 0.5 in. Artwork must be presented in a professional manner. Frames should be no wider than 4 in, simple and consistent with framing seen in fine art galleries. Paintings must be prewired for hanging. No uniframes or saw-toothed hangers are allowed.

 Delivery: All accepted entries must be hand-delivered for award selection and hanging. An AKWS volunteer will accept and return invited paintings from out of town artists. Artist must prepay all postage, including return. Detailed information will be emailed to out of town artists whose work has been accepted into the show. There is a charge of $50 for this service. All entries will be handled with the greatest care, but neither AKWS nor the gallery will be responsible for loss or damage. Artists submitting works should carry their own insurance. Shipped works will be returned in their original containers shortly after August 30th.

 Conditions of Acceptance: Selection and invitation will be made by the Juror, Kathleen Conover, based on digital images submitted to CaFE. Acceptance letters will be emailed the week of July 3rd, 2017. Award selection will be made by the juror from the actual paintings on August 8th, at the First Congregational Church in Anchorage. Any painting that does not comply with eligibility rules or is not identical to the image submitted will be disqualified and returned to the artist. Artists whose accepted works are not received for exhibition will not be eligible to submit entries to AKWS Juried Shows for 2 years (2018 & 2019).

Sales: Works must be for sale. A 30% commission will be retained by APU ConocoPhillips Gallery on all works sold during the exhibition. For further information regarding entries contact: John Beebee (907) 333-2563 or afjcb@jbeebee.net. PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT Alaska Pacific University Galleries.

Awards: Kathleen Conover will select the top paintings for cash/merchandise awards. In 2016 the awards exceeded $5,000 with $1500 for Best in Show.

Application Requirements

Eligibility Criteria