Congrats to My Students!

Haute Route by - Kelsey Datwyler

See How They Run - by Nathan Hardyman

I was pleased to learn last week that two of my students at BYU had work accepted into the Society of Illustrators Student Scholarship Competition. The instructor credits listed for Nathan's piece are incorrect in case you were wondering and in the process of being fixed (gotta ta all the credit you deserve, right?). Nathan and Kelsey join six other BYU students with works accepted (11 pieces total). Most of these students I have also taught or am currently teaching this semester. Way to go guys! Well done and well deserved!

See Nathan's Piece on the SI site
See Kelsey's Piece on the SI site

To SI or not to SI?

That is the question that Kim Kincaid posed as a followup to my last post: 

Do you recommend sending your work to these shows? Is it worth the expense? 

The short answer is yes and yes. Juried shows such as those sponsored by the Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts, Spectrum and 3x3 are long running showcases of the best art the illustration industry has to offer. They are tough to get into because they are very competitive and only what was deemed the best gets in, so acceptance really means something. From the beginning of my career, I have entered these types of shows and I can credit early acceptance in CA and the Society shows for jump starting my career. It seems that every time I get in one of these shows, I get at least one project that I would not have otherwise landed. People look to these annuals every year to see what is good of at least what the hot trends are. Lets take a look at the pros and cons of entering these types of juried shows.

PROS:

1. Exposure. Your work gets seen by thousands of people who may otherwise not have noticed your work. Art buyers, creative directors and designers across the country wait every year for these annuals. If you get in, your work will be seen, and in a way that is impossible to get by any other method.
2. Credibility. Your work is grouped with the best art produced in that particular year. Your piece will be seen adjacent to some of the most respected artists in the industry, therefore, by association, YOU are one of the most respected artists in the industry. It doesn't matter if you have been a professional for 2 years or 20, your work was good enough to get in and that carries with it weight and respect.
3. Validation. Let's be honest, No matter that most of us would do art even if we never won anything, it feels good when others recognize your work for the quality it displays. When we win awards such as these, we can't help but feel vindicated and that in turn motivates us to push even further to improve even more.
4. Cheap Advertising. This is a Catch 22 since if you don't get your work in, you can feel like you wasted your money. But, if you DO get in, these annuals offer the cheapest exposure you can get. Full page spreads in a publication such as Communication Arts can cost thousands of dollars if you bought it yourself, but acceptance in an annual show can give you the same coverage for pennies on the dollar.

CONS:

1. Expensive To Enter. Justifying the expense seems to be the biggest deterrent to entering juried competitions and I admit that I feel it every time I enter. It can feel like you are metaphorically flushing your money down the drain when you shell out $35- or so per entry. Compound that price by several or even a dozen entries and the price starts to feel painful. I look at the entry fees as the price of doing business in the industry. I treat it as an advertising expense. I am paying for the chance to be seen in one of the annuals. There is no guarantee of getting in though, so I could be kissing that cash goodbye (which has happened plenty of times in the past).
2. Too Much Trouble to Enter: There are always deadlines and sometimes the entry process seems complicated. I have felt this and even avoided entering certain competitions from time to time because of this. The good news is, many of the most popular competitions have switched to online entry processes which makes entering far more simple than in the past. Gone are the days when you had to have a tear sheet of your work (or have your work photographed and printed) and then fill out all the forms by hand, package the pieces and FedEx them across the country because you procrastinated the deadline and couldn't send them by snail mail. Now you upload your JPEG into the proper category and even pay online. Spectrum is the lone holdout to online entry (come on guys!) but I suspect it will only be a matter of time there.
3. Hard to Get Accepted. Very true. Most of these shows attract four to six thousand of entries and only accept a two or three hundred pieces. That is roughly a two percent chance of getting your work into any given show. These odds seem steep because they are. That said, I don't think that should be a deterrent to entry. If you think you are good enough, you should enter. You will never know for sure unless you do.

I may be a little biased because I have had pretty good success of the years getting into these shows. I have been accepted into Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts and Spectrum multiple times and had my work in several other juried shows as well, so it is easy for me to tell you it's worth it. That said, here is my advice to anyone considering whether or not to enter a juried show.

The only guarantee I have is that if you don't enter, you won't get in.

Be smart about what you enter and which shows you target. Your style may be much better suited to one show rather than another. For instance, I can't remember the last time I entered American Illustration. My style just is not edgy and dark enough for me to feel like I have a reasonable shot at getting in that publication. If you do anything remotely fantasy oriented, then Spectrum is for you and so on. Budget money every year just for entries so that you don't feel like you are spending money you don't have. I figure if I have a few hundred bucks I can dedicate to getting show exposure, then it is much easier to justify the fees when they roll around. Only enter your very best work. The scatter gun approach doesn't really work here. It's too expensive to just throw out everything and see what sticks. Just go with what your gut tells you is your best. If that is three pieces, then enter three. I entered one piece in Spectrum the first year I got in. Don't get discouraged when you don't get in. It's hard to not take it personally when you thought you entered some good stuff, but that is how it goes. Juries are subjective and what didn't get in one show might get in another or get in the same show another year. Just keep doing your best work and entering your best pieces. The cream always rises to the top. I am still looking for that elusive medal, but I have to be pleased that getting in the shows is a significant accomplishment. Someday maybe. That is why I keep entering.

Hope that answers your question Kim! If anyone else has a different opinion or something else to add, please comment!

Illustration 55 Opening By Proxy

Grasshopper Hunter - nicely placed! Thanks Scott Anderson

Friday Night was the opening of the Society of Illustrators show, Illustrators 55- Part Two. The show is too large (or the building not large enough) to house the entire show at once so they split the advertising and editorial from the book and institutional categories. My Grasshopper Hunter for Boys' Life magazine was accepted into  he show. Alas, as in past years, it was not realistic to make the road trip to New York, so I was happily surprised to get a few shouts out (and photos) from friends who were there.

Thanks to Dale Stephanos for this shot of my piece on the wall

I was also stoked to see the prominent center placement of my piece on the right hand wall of the main museum gallery. Thanks to my friends Dale Stephanos, Scott Anderson and Jodie Hein for the shouts out from the opening that night. You guys rock! Hopefully I will make it there next time.

Grasshopper Hunter in Illustrators 55

Grasshopper Hunter - Digital 11" x 17 by Greg Newbold

I got a nice phone call from the  New York Society of Illustrators yesterday informing me that my piece "Grasshopper Hunter" was accepted into Illustrators 55. It was a nice call to take considering that I have not been so lucky the past couple of years. For those who are unfamiliar with the Society's Annual, this year marks the 55th year of this annual competition which typically accepts around 400 of the years best illustrated works from a pool of around 6000 or so entries. It is pretty stiff competition and it is always nice to get something in the show. The piece also got in the Spectrum Annual earlier this year, so I must have done something right on this one.

Autumn Rhapsody

Autumn Rhapsody - by Greg Newbold - 20" x 14" - Acrylic

Fall is in full swing around here. Crisp morning air slaps me a little wake up call each morning as I run the kids to school. Most of the fall color has already turned in the foothills and the garden, save a few potatoes and carrots yet to be dug, is spent. Man, I love fall.We already had the first snows of the season and more than a few leaves await raking, but hopefully the brutal cold will hold off for a few more weeks and we can enjoy the sweatshirt weather a little longer. This picture is one of my favorites from my book The Touch of the Master's Hand. It seemed appropriate to welcome in the best of autumn weather. The art from this book won awards from Communication Arts, The Society of Illustrators and was also included in The Original Art Show. 

Read more about The Touch of the Master's Hand here.
Order your copies here

I.F.-Beneath

Ghost of the Bayou - Greg Newbold 9" x 24", acrylic

Beneath the surface of the water lies lurking a silent death.... whatever. This painting was done for Utah's Hogle Zoo for their special exhibit Ghost of the Bayou which featured "Antione", a leucistic American alligator. Leucistic is not a true albino condition, thus the electric blue eyes. This painting was accepted into the 50th Annual Society of Illustrators Annual among other awards.




He was found along with his 17 brothers and sisters in a bayou outside of New Orleans in 1987. Born without skin pigment, it was feared that the babies would not survive long in the wild because of an inability to conceal themselves from predators or survive the threat of constant sunburn. They were captured and taken to the New Orleans Zoo to reside.At last report, nine of them are still living today. It was really fun to paint this creature and even more fascinating to see him in real life. One of the great living oddities of nature. Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction.

Read more about Antione here