Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Rejection ~ HURTS ~ Art Show Juries

It's that time again, sending out applications, and receiving either "yes! we are happy to have you in our art show"  or the  "Thank you for your application - Unfortunately, the jury for this year’s Festival did not select your work" 

I haven't heard back from most of my show entries yet, but one of the ones I was counting on shot me down in flames.   Don't ever let anyone fool you, rejection hurts.  They tell you not to take it personally, but how can you not?  It's not personal to THEM, but it is on my end of the stick.

 I do understand that on a intellectual level.  They get to view your art for just a couple of seconds at a time,  and view lots of pictures , because jewelry is very competitive. The show I didn't get in had only 8 slots open for jewelry, and 70 applications to view. that means over 85% of the applications for jewelry got rejected, including mine. I wouldn't normally know this but I did write to the show organizer and asked what I could have done differently... the answer seems to be not much. 

As a Mom. I think one of the hardest things to do is it try to teach my child how to deal with rejection, cause the wide world is chock full of it.  The best way to teach our children is the model good behavior... and well when something hurts, when it's painful, it's hard to be that good model.  I really enjoyed doing this show last year, and financially it was a strong show.

But I  try to be good about this rejection. 

The important thing I guess is to give a time limit to my moping, then brush myself off and get back on the horse.  

For me that means applying to my 2nd or 3rd choice shows for that weekend.  I found out about this around 1030am, and it's now 5pm and I've applied to another show for that weekend, and I'm getting other applications out for some of the weekends that are blank.  That way I can hopefully get into another couple of shows to make up the difference in not getting into this one.

I'm also thinking about I need to update my jury photos.  It's basically too late for this year, but I'll keep an eye out for my best new pieces as I make them and get them professionally photographed before they sell.  
A new batch of recycled watch movement rings


I also need a good updated booth photo.. my booth photo is really kind of  old.. I think a new booth photo showing our recycled displays that match our jewelry needs to be conveyed to the judges. 

I still hurt, but you just can't stop moving, no matter how tempting it is.



4 comments:

Susan Bowerman, Woodside WireWorks said...

Perhaps it was meant to be. Hear me out, dear lady. Your jewelry is beautiful. Had you gotten accepted into this show, perhaps you would miss out on a better one! Sometimes I set my display up in the house before I get started on shows. It helps me work out the kinks before I get there. If you do that, by all means, take a few photos. When you submit your application, call it a dress rehearsal! I bet you are going to find a much better event for that weekend. Wishing you all the best, Kat!

Unknown said...

I understand how you feel Kat! I love your designs! So when your kids are not looking stick your tongue out at the jury and just get back up on that horse!!! Be Blessed!

DragonzWench said...

We don't actually have juried shows here but some are particular and want photos and a declaration that you make the items yourself.
Look at this set-back as a hint maybe that you need to revamp your whole presentation from stall up.
I set up a new display in my lounge a week before the last show and tweeked it several times and everyone loved the new look even though I left one of my cloths at home!!!!
Look at this as a hint that you need to start 2015 with a really new great fantastic eye catching look.
Cheers, Lynn

Melissa said...

I'm with Susan here. I do believe that something better awaits us when things don't work out the way we hoped. You KNOW there's nothing wrong with your jewelry; it's gorgeous. This just wasn't the show for you. Their loss! ~Melissa