NEW THIS WEEK:
Call for Artists: Outdoor Public Art Exhibition

The City of Pittsfield's annual Artscape outdoor public art exhibition program invites outdoor sculptors and public art creators to submit work for consideration for the 2006-07 Artscape exhibition in downtown Pittsfield. Pittsfield is the geographic and population center of the culturally-rich Berkshires of western Massachusetts, where over two million visitors come each year. A $500 honorarium is provided to artists whose work is selected for display.
Application deadline is August 1, so don't delay, click here for complete guidelines!

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Exhibition Opportunity
Child’s Play: irony & consequence

The Student Union Gallery at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst is seeking proposals for an upcoming multi-genre exhibit in October 2006 on the theme of Child’s Play: irony & consequence. The exhibit will be held from October 23rd - 27th. The opening will integrate a brief cross-genre reading on the theme.
We invite artists to submit artworks in any medium or format—photography, sculpture, video, painting, interdisciplinary.

Submissions must include:
1. Artist’s statement.
2. Current resume.

3. Self-addressed stamped envelope (materials will not be returned without a SASE).
4. Up to 3 slides (numbered and labeled with artist’s name, title of work, date, media, dimensions of work, and red dot indicating top of slide); or digital slides on a CD; or CD for audio submissions; or DVD for video submissions.
Deadline for entries: August 1st, 2006. Entry Fee: $5.00 (checks payable to: JC Tibbo/INSIDEOUT ARTS)

Shipping: Artists will be notified by September 1st. Artists are responsible for shipping/delivering their artwork to the gallery Friday, October 20th (12-6pm) and retrieving their work Saturday, October 28th (12-6pm).

Installation: All work MUST be received ready for installation with proper hanging devices ATTACHED and instructions where necessary.

Agreement: We reserve the right to photograph accepted works for publicity and educational purposes. We reserve the right to reject works that differ from the slide. We are not responsible for works left after the pick-up date.
Submit entry materials to: JC Tibbo/INSIDEOUT ARTS
18 Dewey Court
Northampton, MA 01060
413-552-6462 insideoutarts@verizon.net
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June 26, 2006 - The U.S.-Japan Creative Artists' Program provides five-month residencies in Japan for individual creative artists in any discipline. While in Japan, artists work on an individual project that may include the creation of new work or pursuit of other artistic goals. When planning the stay abroad, artists should consider how exposure to Japan's contemporary or traditional cultures can influence their creative work. Five awards are made annually. This program is administered jointly by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission. Guidelines are available at http://www.jusfc.gov.
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July 15
The International Center of Photography's W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography is a $30,000 cash award with an additional $5,000 in fellowship money to be awarded at the discretion of a jury. The grant is awarded to photographers whose past work and proposed project follow the traditions of photographic essayist W. Eugene Smith. For full information on how to apply, visit http:www.smithfund.org/.
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July 17
The Newark Museum's residency program is open to visual artists in the areas of fiber and textiles, clay, fine metals, jewelry and metalsmithing, enameling, sculpture, painting, photography, printmaking, and works on paper. The residency provides the opportunity to use the museum's professional facilities for creating new work. An honorarium of $1,000 will be paid at the conclusion of the residency. For more information about the program and on how to apply, visit http://www.newarkmuseum.org/.
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ONGOING
A nice offer from Joe Blumenthal of Downtown Sounds who generously would like to have artists display their work there. (Downtown Sounds, 21 Pleasant St., Northampton, next to the Pleasant St. Theater)

The window is quite large, and has three panels, each one about 6' X 6', and is about 24" deep. It is exposed to intense sunlight in the morning; the heat of the sun plus the narrowness of the window make it inappropriate to display most musical instruments.

However, the sunlight doesn't hurt most artwork since it's only exposed for a month to six weeks. I normally pay $150 to the artist who installs the window, and work out a consignment agreement for the store to take a percentage of the price if the art is for sale and we manage to sell some of it.

The artwork can be freestanding, lean against a wall at the back of the window that's about three feet high, or (if it's not heavy) be hung from the ceiling.
It's great when the art can have a musical theme, but it's not necessary. Because of its highly visible commercial location, the work should have a mainstream appeal and not have themes which could be offensive. Small pieces don't work well since the window is so large.

If one of your readers is interested in displaying in this context, please have them contact me via email: musician@downtownsounds.com, or via phone at 413- 586-0998.
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ONGOING.
New York City Department of Cultural Affairs + Image Registry The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) is the largest public funder of arts and culture in the country. The Percent for Art artist slide registry is an up-to-date and important component of the Program. The registry is consulted by the architects, panelists, and City agencies for each project. The Percent for Art staff prepares a slide presentation from the registry for each panel meeting. The registry is open to any professional visual artist residing in the United States. Deadline: On-going Information: http:www.nyc.gov/html/dcla/html/panyc/slide_reg.shtml
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