Camera USA® 2018: National Photography Exhibition and Award

Exhibition on View: June 4 - August 3, 2018

·   One cash prize of $5,000 and five honorable mention awards of $100 each

·   Open to photographers residing in the United States of America

·   Open to one photograph taken in the USA after January 1, 2014

·   Exhibition Jurors: Christopher Jones, Associate Curator of Photography at the Ringling Museum of Art; Mark Sloan, Director and Chief Curator of the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art; and Paul Tognarelli, Executive Director and Curator of the Griffin Museum of Photography

·   Non-refundable Entry Fee of $28. Payable online with a credit card

·   A brick and mortar exhibition in the Naples Art Association at 585 Park Street, Naples, Florida from June 4 through August 3, 2018

All photographers residing in the United States are invited to submit one photograph taken in the United States after January 1, 2014 for Camera USA® 2018: National Photography Exhibition and Award. Now in its 8th year, Camera USA® is a national competition created the Naples Art Association to inspire and encourage photographers of all skill levels and from all regions of the United States. The program features three professional jurors, one cash prize of $5,000, five $100 honorable mention awards, and culminates with a brick and mortar exhibition held at the Naples Art Association from June 4 through August 3, 2018. The Naples Art Association is located at 585 Park Street in Naples, Florida in the heart of the 5th Avenue South shopping, dining and entertainment district.

All photographers residing in the United States are invited to submit one photograph taken in the United States after January 1, 2014 for Camera USA® 2018: National Photography Exhibition and Award. Now in its 8th year, Camera USA® is a national competition created by 

Exhibition, National Photography Award and $5,000 Cash Prize

A maximum of 80 photographs will be included in the Camera USA® 2018 exhibition. One photographer will be nominated for the National Photography Award. The award nominee will be notified by telephone or email on May 14, 2018. In order to qualify for the $5,000 cash prize, the nominee must pledge to attend the Naples Art Association’s preview reception and awards presentation on June 1, 2018, arrive by no later than 6 pm EDT and accept the prize check in person.

Travel and Hotel for National Photography Award Winner

A National Photography Award Winner who is residing in the State of Florida will receive up to $300 in travel reimbursement and up to three-nights hotel accommodations in Naples, Florida. A National Photography Award Winner who is residing outside of Florida will receive domestic round-trip economy class airfare for one and three-nights hotel accommodations (May 31, June 1 and June 2) in Naples, Florida. Ground transportation including airport shuttle or rental car will be the Award Winner’s responsibility and will not be arranged or reimbursed by the Naples Art Association.

Past National Photography Award Winners

Past winners are Brian Malloy of Plympton, Massachusetts in 2017; Art David of Naples, Florida in 2016; Kathleen Brennan of Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico in 2015; Brett Grandson of Duluth, Minnesota in 2014, Tony Hertz of Pismo Beach, California in 2013; Jon Malis of Washington D.C. in 2012 and David E. Wensel of Geneva, Illinois in 2011.     

About the Three Jurors

Christopher Jones

Christopher Jones is Associate Curator of Photography at The Ringling Museum of Art, where he oversees the photography, new media and works on paper collection. Since arriving at the Ringling in 2012, he has curated many exhibitions for the Ringling’s photography program, including Territories: Photography, Space, and Power; Builder Levy: Appalachia USA; Unfamiliar Realities; In the Streets: Photographing Urban Spaces; and Witness to War for which he received the 2013 Outstanding New Professional award from the Florida Association of Museums.

Prior to the Ringling, Christopher was Assistant Curator of Prints of Photographs at the University of New Mexico Art Museum, where he co-curated exhibitions such as Altered Landscapes: Photography since the Sixties, and The New World’s Old World: Photographic Views of Ancient America. He has also worked as an art collections manager for galleries and artists’ estates. He is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Florida in the History of Photography, and received his Master of Arts degree from the University of New Mexico in Modern and Contemporary Art.

Mark Sloan

Mark Sloan has been the Director and Chief Curator of the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston since 1994. The Halsey Institute is a multi-disciplinary, non-collecting contemporary art museum, with an emphasis on featuring the work of emerging, mid-career, and oddly overlooked artists from around the world. In his thirty-four-year career, he has maintained a consistent engagement with photography. He curated No Man’s Land: Contemporary Photographers and Fragile Ecologies, featuring Edward Burtynsky, David Maisel and Emmet Gowin. He is currently co-curator for Southbound: Photographs of and about the New South which will debut in Charleston in 2018 and then travel nationally. Several of his exhibitions have traveled to institutions such as the High Museum in Atlanta, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, the New Orleans Museum of Art and Presentation House in Vancouver. He has authored or co-authored sixteen books on subjects ranging from Russian conceptual art to photographs of early twentieth century circus life. In the 1980’s he was Executive Director of The Light Factory in Charlotte, North Carolina and Associate Director of San Francisco Camerawork.

Paula Tognarelli 

Paula Tognarelli is the Executive Director and Curator of the Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, Massachusetts. For the museum and its satellite spaces, she produces over 60 photography exhibitions each year. Tognarelli has an extensive career in the photography world and is well known for her professional contributions to photography projects and programs. Tognarelli has curated exhibitions nationally and internationally, and served as a juror for numerous competitions. She has participated in projects with organizations including A Smith Gallery in Texas, the City of Saint-Germaine-en-Laye in France, the Clarence John Laughlin Award in New Orleans, Duncan Miller Gallery for the Your Daily Photograph program, the Filter Festival in Chicago, the Lishui International Photography Festival in China, Los Angeles Center of Photography, PDN’s Curator Awards, PDN’s Photo Annual, Photoville’s Fence, the Providence Center for Photographic Arts, San Francisco International Photography Exhibition and Vermont Center for Photography. She holds a Master of Science degree in Arts Administration from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts. She is a graduate of the New England School of Photography and is a candidate for a Master’s in Education at Lesley University in Cambridge.

Tognarelli is a regular participant in national and local portfolio reviews, has been a panelist and featured speaker at photography events and conferences including MacWorld and Color Connections. She has been a panelist for the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Photography Fellowships, as well as Danforth Art Museum and Arts Worcester, a juror for the Cambridge Art Council’s Community Supported Art Initiative, South Shore Art Center, Marblehead, Rockport, Bedford, and New Hampshire Art Associations, and many area camera clubs and art councils. She is a nominator for the Prix Pictet in Switzerland, the Heinz Prize in Pennsylvania, the Robert Gardner Fellowship at Harvard University, St. Botolph Club Foundation, MOPA Triennial, Kyoto Prize and the Rappaport Prize in Massachusetts.

Enter Online with CaFÉ

Use CaFÉ to enter the Camera USA® 2018. CaFÉ accounts are free, easy to set up and do not expire. After setting up an account, artists may enter national competitions hosted by the Naples Art Association (Founders Juried Awards Exhibitions, the National Art Encounter Competition and the annual Camera USA® photography competition) as well as competitions hosted by other organizations around the country and the world.

To set you your account go to www.callforentry.org and click on the “How to Apply” tab. Be sure to watch the “How to Apply” video for a brief and complete overview. Use the “Help” tab for more details or to email a question to the CaFÉ help team.  

Eligibility 

Photographers residing in any of the fifty States in the United States of America are eligible to enter one photograph taken in the United States after January 1, 2014 and not exhibited in the Naples Art Association’s galleries within the past 12 months. Photographs must remain on display for the entire duration of the Camera USA® 2018 exhibition.

Non-Refundable Entry Fee   

A $28 non-refundable entry fee covers the processing of one entry. There is a limit of one photographic entry per person. The non-refundable entry fee is payable online by credit card during the entry process.  

Size Limitation: Maximum overall dimensions (including frame, if a frame is used) are not to exceed 40 x 40 inches. When completing your application, enter the framed dimensions if you will be exhibiting a framed photograph.

Presentation and Size Limitations for Glass

All photographs accepted for the Camera USA® 2018 exhibition must be delivered in exhibition ready condition. Photographs must be ready to hang with a proper hanging wire and raw wire ends taped. Photographs mounted on metal or acrylic can be equipped with a French cleat for hanging. Sawtooth hangers are not permitted. For safety reasons, glass may be used only if the frame is 20 x 20 inches or smaller. Larger frames requiring a glazing must have Plexiglas or another type of shatterproof glazing.

Jury Process Results Notification

Notifications will be posted to your CaFÉ account by March 26, 2018. To view the status of your entry, log into your CaFÉ account and click on “My Applications.” Shortly before results are posted an email notification will be sent to the email address in your CaFÉ account. For photographers with photographs accepted for the exhibition, instructions and addresses will be sent via email for hand delivering or shipping. It is your responsibility as an entrant to log into your CaFE account and check the status of your entry. It is also you responsibility to have a current and valid email address entered in your CaFÉ account.

Photographs accepted for the Camera USA® 2018 exhibition may be used to promote the exhibition and future Naples Art Association programs. They may appear on the Naples Art Association's website, other websites, on social media and may be reproduced in printed materials including newspapers, magazines and other publications to announce and promote Camera USA® 2018 or other Naples Art Association programs.
 

Artist’s Statement

An artist’s statement of not more than 2,000 characters is required with your entry. Statements provide information and your insight for the jurors. If your photograph is accepted for the exhibition, the artist’s statement you submit with your entry will be printed and mounted in the gallery next to your photograph. Do not include your name in your artist’s statement or photograph description. The jury process is “blind” which means the jurors will not see your name when they view your entry. Also refrain from including your website URL or any other personally identifying information in your artist’s statement or photograph description.

The purpose of an artist’s statement is to help others understand the aspects in your work you think are the most important. Your artist’s statement can put readers “in your shoes” by revealing your goals and aspirations as a photographer. When you talk about your work, you probably address one or more important aspects behind your work. Writing an artist’s statement can be merely the process of clearly stating the thoughts you express during a critique, a conversation in your studio and even during a social gathering when someone learns you are a photographer and asks you “What do you do?” Providing a written artist’s statement allows you to share your ideas and opinions when you are not present and able to speak in person about your photography.

Photograph Delivery

Photographs accepted for Camera USA® 2018 may be hand delivered or shipped to ARTMove LLC in Naples. An accepted photograph must remain on display for the entire duration of the exhibition and the earliest date it may be removed from the Naples Art Association is August 5, 2018 at 11 am.

Hand Delivery: Deliver your accepted photograph on Friday, May 11 from 10 am to 2 pm or on Saturday May 12 from 12 noon - 2 pm (delivery prior to May 11 is available by appointment and during regular gallery hours). The Naples Art Association is located at 585 Park Street, Naples, FL 34102. Gallery hours are Monday - Friday from 10 am to 4 pm.

Shipping Your Accepted Photograph: Accepted photographs may be shipped to ARTMove LCC in Naples, Florida to arrive by no later than May 7, 2018. The ARTMove LLC shipping address and contact information will be provided in the jury process notification email sent to all applicants with a photograph accepted for the exhibition. Exhibitors are responsible for the cost of transporting their photograph to and from Naples, Florida. Shipped photographs must include a FedEx or UPS prepaid return shipping label, or a FedEx or UPS account number for return. Return shipping to PO Boxes is not permitted. ARTMove LLC will receive and return all shipped artwork. The ARTMove LLC shipping address and contact information will be provided to all applicants with a photograph accepted for the exhibition. 

Use care when packing your photograph. Cushion it on all sides with at least 4 inches of packing material and pack in a sturdy shipping carton. Popcorn (loose foam) is not an acceptable packing material as it will allow your photograph to shift during transit. Airfloat Systems sells excellent cushioned-shipping “Strongbox” containers that are sturdy and reusable. Enter code NAA when ordering online to receive a 20% discount on all orders. See www.airfloatsys.com. FedEx Office locations sell lightweight boxes specifically designed for shipping framed artwork http://www.fedex.com/us/office/services/packandship/supplies.html.

Please note: The Naples Art Association and ARTmove LLC are not responsible for photographs damaged during shipment. The Naples Art Association reserves the right to disqualify damaged photographs from the exhibition.

Preview Reception and Awards Presentation

On Friday, June 1, 2018 from 5:30 - 7:30 pm the Naples Art Association will host a preview reception and awards presentation for the Camera USA® 2018 exhibition at 585 Park Street in Naples. The Camera USA® 2018 National Photography Award Nominee will be announced during the reception and must be present by no later than 6 pm EDT in order to qualify for the cash prize. Honorable mention winners will also be announced. The preview reception is complimentary for Naples Art Association contributors and exhibiting photographers. For all others there is a $10 suggested donation.   

Must Be Present to Receive Cash Award

In order to receive the cash prize of $5,000, the Camera USA® 2018 National Photography Award Winner must attend the June 1, 2018 Camera USA® Reception and Awards Presentation and accept the prize check in person. The National Photography Award Winner must arrive at the Naples Art Association by 6:00 pm EDT.

Gallery Hours

The Camera USA® 2018 exhibition will be on view from June 4 through August 3, 2018. It is a brick and mortar exhibition (as opposed to web based) and the exhibition will not be available for online viewing. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 10 am to 4 pm. Admission is free.  

Sales 

Photographs exhibited in Camera USA® 2018 may be available for purchase or listed as NFS (not for sale). The Naples Art Association processes sales and will retain a 30% commission on all artwork sold during the exhibition. Proceeds from artwork sales support the Naples Art Association’s exhibition programs. Photographers’ proceed checks will be mailed. Photographers should receive their checks within three weeks from the close of the exhibition. Once stated, the price of a photograph may not be changed. Please take into consideration your costs for printing, framing, shipping and the 30% sales commission before establishing a price for your photograph.

End of Exhibition Pick Up or Shipped Photograph Return

Photographs will be available for pickup from 11 am to 1 pm on Sunday, August 5, 2018 and from 10 am to 2 pm on Monday, August 6, 2018. Shipped photographs with prepaid return shipping provided will be return shipped by ARTMove LLC during the week of August 13, 2018.

Storage space is limited. Photographs should be picked up during scheduled pick up dates and return shipping labels should be provided, if your photograph is shipped. Photographs not picked up by September 13, 2018 will become the property of the Naples Art Association.   

Advice to All Who Enter

Camera USA® 2018 is a competition open to photographers of all skill levels and experience. It is a very competitive program and not every photographer who enters Camera USA® 2018 will be invited to exhibit. If your photograph is accepted for the exhibition, you should be prepared to print, frame or otherwise prepare your image for hand delivery or shipping.

Before choosing an image to enter, it is important to consider print quality and the cost of framing and shipping.  Make a test print at the size you are proposing for the exhibition and check your test print for good quality print resolution. Plan ahead for expenses by getting one or more estimates for framing or mounting your photograph. Shipping a large photograph to Naples, Florida may be expensive from your location or if expedited shipping is required to meet the deadline. Check rates for shipping your photograph to and from zip code 34108 in Naples, Florida by calling FedEx at 1.800.GoFedEx (463-3339) or by using their online shipping rate estimator and transit time tool at https://www.fedex.com/ratefinder/home?link=4&cc=US&language=en.

Waiver 

Due care will be taken with all photographs. However, the Naples Art Association will not be held responsible for loss or damage to exhibited photographs. The Naples Art Association recommends Camera USA® 2018 exhibition participants acquire insurance to cover loss or damage.

Image Use
Images of photographs accepted for the Camera USA® 2018 exhibition may be used to promote the exhibition and future Naples Art Association programs. They may appear on the Naples Art Association's webiste, other websites, on social media and may be reproduced in printed materials including newspapers, magazines and other publications to announce and promote Camera USA® 2018 or other Naples Art Association programs.  

Copyright
All rights to the photographs remain with the photographer.

Calendar for Camera USA® 2018

March 5, 2018, Entry Deadline

March 26, 2018; Notification Date (notification posted to CaFE account and emails sent to email contact in CaFE account)

May 7, 2018; Shipped Artwork Deadline (ship to ARTMove, LLC)

May 11, 2018 from 10 am to 2 pm; Artwork Receiving (or on an earlier day by appointment)

May 12, 2018 from 12 noon to 2 pm; Artwork Receiving

May 14, 2018; Camera USA® 2018 Award Nominee Notified

June 1 from 5:30 to 7:30 pm, Preview Reception and Awards Presentation

June 4 - August 3, 2018; Exhibition On View with Free Admission (Hours: Monday - Friday from 10 am to 4 pm)

August 5, 2018, 11 am to 1 pm; Artwork Pick-up

August 6, 2018, 10 am to 2 pm; Artwork Pick-up

Week of August 13, 2018; Photographs Return Shipped by ARTMove LLC

Contact Person: Jack O’Brien, (239) 262-6517 ext. 106, jack.obrien@naplesart.org

Application Requirements

Eligibility Criteria