Woman Made Gallery CFA: 5th Midwest Open juried by Alison Wong

5th Midwest Open - Alison Wong

Ends on August 1, 2021

 $30.00 USD

Woman Made Gallery seeks submissions for the Annual Midwest Open, now in its 5th year, and planned for October-November 2021. This is a group exhibition juried by Alison Wong (Director and Curator of Wasserman Projects). This exhibition will be held at Woman Made Gallery located at 2150 S. Canalport Ave., Chicago, IL 60608 in the Pilsen neighborhood. 

EXHIBITION DESCRIPTION

The Midwest Open is an annual exhibition at WMG that highlights women and non-binary artistic excellence from the Midwest. This exhibition puts forth the vibrancy, diversity, and strong feminist voice right here in the Heartland. 

As a juried exhibition, each iteration of the Midwest Open offers applicants the unique opportunity to have their work reviewed by esteemed arts professionals and industry connectors. The exhibition then results from a highly selective juried competition and presents excellent work across career levels. Hundreds of artists enter our competitions every year, but only a limited number make it through the jurying process. Cash prizes are awarded to top three artists in exhibition, as designated by the juror.

Awards: 1st place: $300 | 2nd place: $150 | 3rd place: $75

The exhibition benefits artists and viewers alike. While included artists receive exposure, those with an interest in art made by women and non-binary folks are provided with an invaluable resource for discovering Midwestern talent.

Woman Made Gallery seeks artwork in all mediums. We encourage intersectional feminist approaches and lived experiences considering gender and sexuality, race, ethnicity, class, and/or disability, among other social locations.

ABOUT THE JUROR

Alison Wong is first-generation Chinese American artist, curator, and educator born in Illinois and based in Detroit, MI since 2004. Wong received her MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, MI and her BFA from Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD. Primarily working in the field of painting and drawing, Wong takes inspiration from her personal histories and her professional practice as Director and Curator of Wasserman Projects, founder of Butter Projects, and Adjunct Faculty at College for Creative Studies.

IMPORTANT DATES
EXHIBITION DATES: October 7 - November 7
SUBMISSIONS DEADLINE: Sun. August 1 at 11:59 PM CST
NOTIFICATIONS: Sun. August 22
DEADLINE FOR WORKS RECEIVED FOR INSTALLATION: Sat. September 25

SUBMISSION FEE
The submission fee for The 5th Midwest is $30. Only one submission may be entered per artist. Each submission requires one artwork, though up to three artworks may be considered per submission. Paid submission does not guarantee an exhibition opportunity. No refunds offered.

Members at the Enhanced Artist Level and above receive one free entry annually. Please email general@womanmade.org to receive your one-time code for free entry redemption.

WMG offers fee waivers to those that request the need and upon approved application. WMG offers 25 fee waivers in total. To acknowledge the historic inequities of wealth distribution, 15 of the 25 are exclusively reserved for ALAANA/BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA+. Factors that result in an approved application include financial instability or low income status, student or recent graduate status, identification as ALAANA/BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA+, or a demonstrated need otherwise. WMG accepts Fee Waiver Request forms on a rolling basis until all fee waivers have been distributed. A note declaring all fee waivers have been distributed will be added to the Submission form at that time. (That is, if you are reading this, the form is active, and there are still fee waivers available!) The team at WMG will approve and send a Submittal fee waived link within 4 days of application receipt.  To request a fee waiver -- complete this form.

ELIGIBILITY
Woman Made Gallery is a space for women and nonbinary artists, including trans women and femme/feminine-identifying genderqueer artists. 

For the purposes of eligibility, Woman Made Gallery defines the Midwest as consisting of 12 states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

Due to limited staff and wall size restrictions, artworks must fall within 6’ horizontally and under 75 pounds in weight, unless delivered to and picked up from our 4th floor gallery by the artist. Artists may be additionally responsible for the installation of oversized works.

New media artworks are eligible. To be considered, artists must  submit a sample .mp4 or url under 10mins for purposes of consideration. For exhibition, WMG requires a digital transfer (Google Drive, Vimeo downloads, WeTransfer) as well as a USB formatted in .mp4 file format delivered to the gallery. WMG can provide a limited number of media players, Epson projectors and TV monitors with basic speakers. All other new media needs are the responsibility of the artist.

ART SALES
Accepted work may be listed for sale, though is not required. WMG will retain a 40% commission on sold works. Work remains the property of the artist until sold. Sold artworks shall remain in the exhibition until the end of the exhibition. Artists will be paid no later than 30 days after the close of the exhibit.

TERMS OF EXHIBITION
An artist contract with full terms of exhibition will be administered at the time of acceptance notification. Please note that the shipping/delivery to and from the gallery is the responsibility of the artist including all associated fees, insurance of work en route. If work is not picked up from exhibition by the date noted in the artist contract, the work will become the property of Woman Made Gallery and subject to donation to WMG's fundraising efforts, or otherwise discarded. WMG is happy to talk through preparations, offer advice, and recommend resources as requested.