Friday, January 17, 2014

American Tapestry Biennial 10


American Tapestry Alliance website has now posted information about the upcoming ATB10 exhibit:

http://americantapestryalliance.org/exhibitions/atbiennials/american-tapestry-biennial-10-2/

I'm quite happy to have a tapestry accepted into this show.  I've entered all but one of the ATB exhibits since the beginnings in the mid-1990s.  This is the third ATB my work has been accepted for -- ATBII (1998), ATB5 (2004-05) and now, ATB10 (2014-15).  I've also had work rejected in six other ATB exhibits.

Juried exhibits are always bittersweet for me.  Of course, I'm thrilled to have work accepted and yet I'm sad for those who's work wasn't chosen this time around.  Sometimes the rejection hurts more than other times.  When one is doing the best work that one can and the rejections come, it's hard not to feel like giving up.  If not give up on making the work, at least give up on entering juried exhibits.  I did that for about a year sometime back.  Faced with back to back rejections from shows I just said to myself ... that's it!  No more juried shows for me; I don't need the grief.

But I was back in the game before long.  In fact, at that time I submitted the same work that had been rejected a couple of times to yet another show.  And it was accepted.  And it won first place.

So... this time around, the juror saw something in my tapestry that caused her to accept it into the mix of the others in the exhibition.  I'm glad.  And I'm sad for others who've not had their work included this time.  But please keep weaving.  Keep believing in your work.

In Spirit

1 comment:

  1. I have always entered the ATB exhibits, as well, and have now had a 50% success rate, which is also a 50% 'failure' rate. Having worked with jurors, though I know having a piece not chosen doesn't even mean the juror didn't like it. It just means it's not right for that show, at that time.I really did not expect my entered tapestry to make it into this exhibit. Sometimes the surprises are good ones!

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