ARTIST OPEN CALL | PANEL’S TOP TIPS
Our panel of experts reviewing this year’s international artist Open Call submissions for Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair have given their top tips on applying.
A useful guide of tips, do’s and don'ts to understand what our panel are looking for when it comes to reviewing applications!
To keep the hang completely democratic and fresh each year, we have an annually-changing panel of industry experts with varying taste and expertise who carefully review each application individually & anonymously on a piece-by-piece basis.
Dr FAISAL ABDU'ALLAH, Artist & Professor of Printmaking at University of Wisconsin–Madison
Artists have always been the shapers of social conscience using their work as a site for new reflections and a place where ideas of justice and equality are repurposed for the common good. Be steadfast and honour this facet when considering your proposed submission.
Tolù Adẹ̀kọ́, Interior Designer & Founder of Adẹ̀kọ́ & Co
Elevate Your Prints with Captivating Titles: Use compelling titles to spark curiosity, evoke emotion, and guide viewers on a journey through your artistic vision. Craft each title with care, infusing it with the essence of the narrative waiting to be discovered in your work. Let your titles invite exploration and deepen the connection between your art and your audience.
Sigrun Davíðsdóttir, Journalist & Art Lover
There are plenty of good tips here on the website, read them all! In addition, talk to people who have already successfully submitted works if you know anyone who has. Once you feel the submission is done, take an extra look at it, just to make sure it’s as you want it to be. If you have the time, let it wait for ca 24 hours before scrutinising again – anything missing? – and then send it!
Since I’m interested in text, I would recommend thinking through the text accompanying your submission; consider the text as an important part of your submission. I am interested in conceptual work where text is often an integral part of the work. The text doesn’t need to be long, it doesn’t need to be clever – but it does need to be concise and well thought through (and do get rid of spelling mistakes by using spell-check). Consider having someone looking it over to test how the text and the submission as a whole is understood by someone who doesn’t have the same insight into the work as you have. And lastly, however stressful a submission can be, enjoy it all and have fun!
Thomas Gosebruch, Artist & Winner of Printmakers Printmaker Award
Not avoiding the art world context - try and follow yourself.
Deirdre Kelly, Artist Curator at the Scuola Internazionale di Grafica, Venezia
Inspire and be inspired. Select strong images representative of your work, following the traditions of printmaking, experimentation and exploration of ideas within the widest parameters.
Carolina Laia Jozami, Curator at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Argentina
Presenting artworks in the context of an art fair is an ideal occasion to reflect on your own practice and in which stage of your career you are at. In this sense, try to identify which of your works you feel it is important to show at this moment and why.
Capacity for synthesis and clarity are essential to present your work to others. Focus on communicating the technical and conceptual aspects embodied in your practice and highlighting the strongest aspects of your work.
Enjoy preparing your application for further thought about your work!
Carolin von Massenbach, Head of Prints & Multiples at Bonhams, London
Be free and brave! Don’t be influenced by the trends, be true to yourself and follow your own style. Explore creative boundaries both with technique and subject.
Jo Stockham, Artist & Head of the Print MA at the Royal College of Art
Take clear photographs of your work against a neutral background and make them consistent in terms of lighting and tone otherwise it is quite distracting to people viewing your work. Also poor photographs ruin good work.
If you work in series make it clear by showing us an installation shot.
Don't feel you have to show every skill/idea that you have.
Our definition of print is broad but you may need to describe what is happening in a mixed media print, i.e. processes and materials.
Be ambitious, we want to see work which pushes the boundaries of print.
MiCHAEL Taylor, Established Paupers Press & Co-founder of Standpoint Studios and Gallery; The Artists International Print Project; and Mark Tanner Sculpture Award
Make sure the images you send show the full scale of the work, are clear and accurate representations and that you feel confident that they best represent your practice. Be happy and confident that you have done yourself justice.
Veronique Bellet, Patron of Hospital Rooms and a Seasoned Brand & Concept Hunter
Embrace audacity. Stand out boldly in our image-rich world; seize attention by submitting work that captivates, moves, or offers fresh experiences to viewers.
Weave narratives. Articulate the inspiration and narrative behind your work with clarity, enriching your submission with depth and resonance.
Mastery matters. Highlight your technical prowess and craftsmanship; collectors and viewers cherish the skill and innovation evident in your creations and are always keen to learn.
