This 9th Annual Allegany National Photography Competition & Exhibition (ANPCE), sponsored by the Allegany Arts Council, will meld the region’s rich concentration of photographic artists with an influx of national photographers in a juried competition offering $6,500 in cash prizes.

Show Dates

The exhibition will run from April 1-22, 2023, in the Saville and Schwab Galleries of the Allegany Arts Council in Cumberland, MD. Cumberland is located in the scenic and historic Mountain Maryland region, roughly midway between Baltimore and Pittsburgh.

The Public Opening and Awards Ceremony is scheduled Saturday, April 1, 2023, from 6-8 PM.

Background

The ANPCE has grown to become one the largest and most respected juried shows in the country. Since its inception in 2015, photographers from all 50 states have entered work, seeking national recognition and the opportunity to win cash awards.

In 2022, the show attracted 819 entries from 252 photographers nationwide, with 65 works making the final cut for exhibit in the ANPCE physical and on-line galleries.

Juror

Some of the country’s foremost fine-art authorities have juried the show. The 2023 juror is Todd J. Tubutis, Director and Curator of the Art Museum at West Virginia University in Morgantown, WV. Previously, he was the Associate Director of the Sheldon Museum of Art at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the Executive Director of Blue Sky Gallery, a non-profit venue in Portland, OR, dedicated to international contemporary photography. He is also a former exhibition project director at the Field Museum in Chicago. He has taught and conducted research in cultural and visual anthropology in the U.S., Canada, and Hungary.

Previous ANPCE jurors have included Karen Irvine of the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago; Dan Leers of the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, PA; Shannon Thomas Perich of the Smithsonian’s Photographic History Collection; David Oresick of the Mattress Factory; Stephen Perloff, founder and editor of The Photo Review; and nationally recognized photographers Brownie Harris and Kenneth Garrett.

Application Requirements

Applicants may enter no more than six (6) entries, with no maximum per category.

Artwork must meet the following criteria:

• All entries MUST be for sale.
• All entries must be original and created by the applicant.
• No entries will be accepted which have been previously exhibited in the Allegany Arts Council galleries.
• Although there is no restriction on when entries were created, artists are encouraged to enter their latest work.

Eligibility Criteria

Photographers may enter in any of the following three categories:

Category 1: Color
Two-dimensional photographic works of art printed in color on any medium/substrate (paper, canvas, metal, etc.) and using any process (wet darkroom, computer, etc.), maximum 48” in width, professionally presented and wired for hanging.

Category 2: Monochrome/Black and White
Two-dimensional photographic works of art printed in black and white or monochrome on any medium/substrate (paper, canvas, metal, etc.) and using any process (wet darkroom, computer, etc.), maximum 48” in width, professionally presented and wired for hanging. 

Category 3: Photography as Sculpture

The Photography as Sculpture category is about expanding the two-dimensional photographic plane into a three-dimensional installation. This should be accomplished by incorporating a dynamic combination of materials, methods, and concepts that challenge traditional photography boundaries.

We are looking for an original approach which merges photographic image(s) and material and inhabits a three-dimensional space in a unique, creative and non-traditional installation. 

Submissions may combine any media, but must be fundamentally photography-based. This category does NOT include: applied texture on the surface of a two-dimensional (flat) print; stereoscopic photographs; two-dimensional (flat) prints that portray a perspective shift, or pseudo-3D images. 

The artwork installation must be ready for display; free-standing, placed on a pedestal, or wired for hanging. Overall size may not exceed 84” in height and 48" in length and width. Weight may not exceed 40 lbs. If needed, standard electrical AC power (60Hz, 120V) is available. To best represent the work, we REQUIRE the artist to submit a short video under 5MB incorporating multiple views of the installation. Written commentary describing the installation is also required.

Entries MUST meet the above definition to qualify for jurying.