AAW 2024 POP Show and Auction "Balance"

Submission period: December 1, 2023, to January 15, 2024, 11:59 p.m. CST. 

The Professional Outreach Program (POP) is pleased to announce that the theme for its 18th annual exhibition and auction is "Balance." Each year, the POP shows have featured an exciting mix of excellent work created by a roster of national and international established, mid-career, and emerging artists. 

POP themes are chosen to provide a dynamic springboard for creative ideas and a showcase for extraordinary small-scale work. Psychology has shown that limits spur creative thinking, and the size restriction (all pieces must fit in a 6"/15cm cube) provides a second creative constraint that we hope will spark your imagination and ingenuity.

Balance is central to almost every aspect of our existence, and as theme balance offers myriad possibilities. It could refer to physical, emotional, or environmental balance; balance as harmony in composition or in materials. Or to work/life balance, bank balance, balance of powers, to name just a few starting points. 

Balance will premiere at the AAW Gallery of Wood Art in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and be on view March 15 to May 12, 2024, before traveling to Portland, Oregon, for the 2024 AAW Symposium, May 23-26. Live/Online auction May 25, 2024.

Artworks will be professionally photographed and compiled in a full-color catalog. Participating artists receive complimentary copies.

Eligibility/submission details 

  • The show is open to any current AAW member anywhere in the world, and to fulltime students in art, design, or industry-related degree programs, regardless of AAW membership status.
  •  Entry fee: $25 for up to three separate pieces. Fees are waived for students in full-time accredited art- or wood industry-related programs or apprenticeships.
  • All entries must include turning, but any material may be used.
  • A 100 word or shorter theme statement connecting your piece to the exhibition theme is required. 
  • All types of turnings are welcome: sculptural, functional, segmented, ornamental, green-turned, etc.
  • Work, as it will be displayed on the pedestal, must fit into the area of a 6" (interior dimensions) cube. No exceptions.
  • All artists will be notified of their application status by January 31, 2024.


Helpful Information

Entry images

Submit digital images in .jpg format, maximum size 2 MB per file. You may provide up to three images for each entry. The main image should be an overall shot; the remaining two images can include details or alternative views. Since the show is juried through photographs, it is important that images be clear, properly exposed, and in focus. Do not watermark or include your name on the images. A plain background is preferred for jurying, and Instagram-style images are discouraged.

 

Delivery and display

 Accepted work must be shipped to arrive at the AAW Gallery of Wood Art in Saint Paul by February 14, 2023. Artwork must be ready for installation—freestanding or with an easel or other support provided. Support subject to approval.


Sales/auction
This show concludes with a live and online auction at the AAW Symposium. Funds raised support POP programs, including the Instant Gallery awards, critiques, fellowships, Artist Showcase, panel discussions, and other professional development initiatives. Artists may set a reserve price and retain up to 50% of the proceeds.

CLICK HERE TO APPLY

Questions? Contact Tib Shaw at [email protected].