January 12 – March 21, 2024
Application period: Through November 7, 2023
Happiness is an ever-changing concept/state-of-being/thing. It ranges from pure serenity to absolute ecstasy, from contentment to awe. One person’s happy is not another’s: Happiness is a unique sensation. For this exhibit we’d like to know: What’s making you happy? What does that look like? Like a dog with two tails? Like a pig in mud? Are you happy as Larry? Over the moon? Something entirely other? Is happiness in reach or always just beyond, or other?
Some ideas about happiness:
- In the US, the Declaration of Independence asserts that happiness is an unalienable right. How’s that working?
- In the nation of Bhutan, happiness is based on these markers: psychological wellbeing, health, education, time use, cultural diversity and resilience, good governance, community vitality, ecological diversity and resilience, living standards
- In the nation of Finland, happiness “… stems from a close relationship with nature and our down-to-earth lifestyle: it’s not some mystical state, but a skill that can be learned and shared.”
- Is happiness discrete from sadness? Are they opposites?
- And, what about that yellow Smiley Face, and its emoji cousin[s]?
Looking For
Seeking visual work that explores and interprets the many facets and meanings of happiness: literal to metaphorical. Open to visual art in 2D + 3D; representational and nonrepresentational; interpretive, realistic or abstract. Original work must be made by the applicant between 2022 to the present. The recent modification of an older or previously dated artwork DOES NOT make the artwork eligible unless the artist can provide significant documentation of differences between the original and revised versions of the piece.
Accepted Media
2D and 3D work using materials that include clay, pencil/crayon, fibers, metal, mixed media, paint, paper, plastic, wood; in the categories of fiber-wearable, fiber-non-wearable, furniture, photography, sculpture, ceramics, painting, drawing, mixed media, collage, and more.
Size Restrictions
- 2D work should not exceed 48” in width or 65” in length.
- 3D work must be freestanding and easily moved, not to exceed 35 pounds. Because of companion programs planned in conjunction with the exhibition, 3D work will be occasionally and temporarily relocated in the gallery and in the GAAC.
Application Fee
Applicants may enter up to two [2] submissions for the juror’s consideration. $25 GAAC member, $35 nonmember. This is a nonrefundable fee.
Exhibition Calendar
- Exhibition: January 12 – March 21, 2024
- Apply on-line: Through November 7, 2023 at 11:59 pm EST
- Notification of acceptance: Late November 2023
- Shipped work deadline: January 2 – 4, 2024
- Drop-off: Friday, January 5 + Saturday, January 6, 10 am – 2 pm, both days
- Pick-up: Friday, March 22 + Saturday, March 23 — 9 am — 2 pm both days
- Reception: January 12, 2024, 5 – 7 pm
Juror
Valerie Mann, a Saline, Michigan resident, earned a BFA in painting from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and an MFA in sculpture from Michigan State University. She has been making art, exhibiting [including at the Glen Arbor Arts Center] and selling her work in the U.S., and abroad for more than 30 years. Currently, she’s a part-time drawing instructor at Washtenaw Community College. She has taught students in pre-school age programs, through all levels of K-12, alternative high school programs, and as an adjunct college professor. She continues to teach multi-age adult classes in various media and students in “at-risk” programs. She lectures on the importance of nurturing creativity and “art as problem-solving.” Mann’s installation work is deeply rooted in sewing techniques and feminist and social justice themes. She also works in watercolor.
http://valerie-mann.squarespace.com/
Awards
Three awards will be given: $500 Best of Show; and two, $160 Merit Awards. Both awards are made possible by Amy L. Clark-Carels Family Fund, and the Barbara and Victor Klein Fund.
Photographs
You may submit up to 2 works for the juror’s consideration.
- You are required to submit an image of the overall work. You also have the option of providing 1 additional, detail image per work submitted.
- Please provide well-composed, focused images of your work. This is the work people will view online. Present your work as well as you possibly can.
- Do not photograph 2D work behind glass. If framed, please do not include the 2D artwork’s frame in your exhibition image unless it is part of the composition vs. a finishing detail.
The Happy exhibition will be installed in the GAAC gallery, and viewable as an on-line gallery on the GAAC website.
Requirements
- Work submitted must be one-of-a-kind, innovative, and original in design. Work derivative of other artists’ work, or work created in a workshop with the collaboration of an instructor is not accepted.
- An entry may be comprised of multiple units [e.g. a diptych]; but may not exceed the maximum dimensions or weights described below. If offered for sale, a single entry comprised of multiple units must be sold for one price. The individual units may not be sold separately.
- Work submitted must have been completed in the last two years [made from 2021 – present]. The recent modification of an older or previously dated artwork DOES NOT make the artwork eligible unless the artist can provide significant documentation of differences between the original and revised versions of the piece.
- Work must be gallery ready when submitted. Paintings and other wall works should be finished or framed. Please use gallery wire. No saw tooth hanging hardware is allowed. No wet paintings, or work submitted on warped canvases will be allowed.
- No work will be accepted after the dates and times for delivery listed on the prospectus.
The artist’s contact email provided on the application must remain active during the submissions and exhibition process. The artist is responsible for checking their email for exhibition acceptance and/or decline, and other information regarding the exhibition.
Artist’s Statement | REQUIRED
Happy applicants must submit a short [100 words max] statement that provides context for looking at the artwork.
Sales
- The sale price written on the application is the FINAL price if the work is accepted in the exhibition. Exhibitors may not change sale price after the work is accepted for exhibition.
- The GAAC will retain a 40% commission on work sold during the exhibition. Artists receive 60% of the final selling price. Artists will receive payment following the close of the exhibition.
Note
The GAAC staff and Exhibitions Committee reserve the right to the final selection of work to be shown in the exhibition. Accepted work may not be removed before the close of the exhibition.
For More Information
Contact Sarah Bearup-Neal, GAAC Gallery Manager: 231-334-6112.
Apply Here
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