M&T Bank Clothesline Festival

The Memorial Art Gallery places a high value on fine art created by hand and requires that all participating Clothesline artists submit work that:

• is the artist’s original work, either one-of-a-kind or limited-edition, and is conceived and designed solely by the artist shows vision, imagination and originality.
• is of professional quality, expertly executed without technical faults.

Not allowed: work made from commercial kits, patterns, stencils or molds; buy and sell items; personal care items; edible items; candles; plants; flowers (fresh, dried, silk); beaded jewelry made solely by restringing commercially produced or purchased beads. Clothesline prohibits the display or sale of work that is religious or political in nature.

Reproductions are limited to 30% of booth display.

In keeping with the Memorial Art Gallery’s commitment to present a high standard show with quality work, all entrants are subject to Clothesline eligibility criteria. Jurors do not provide individual critiques; all decisions are final.

All first-time applicants, or those who did not participate in last year’s Festival, must send examples of their work and booth layout to jury.clothesline@mag.rochester.edu for selection. If you have exhibited at the festival in the past, work must be consistent in quality, style, and medium as in past years. If there have been any changes, please contact us at clothesline@mag.rochester.edu.

Materials:

1. One (1) to three (3) JPEG images which show the quality and style of your current work
2. One (1) JPEG image of your current booth display, showing the overall presentation and variety of the work you plan to exhibit

Please name the image files in this format: lastname1, lastname2, lastname3, lastnamebooth.

Please include a brief description (10-25 words) of your work, materials, and technique.

If you are submitting work in two categories, please send one email with separate images and descriptions for each category. You may exhibit work only in categories that have been reviewed and accepted by the jurors.

If you don’t have a photo of your booth, please submit a photo showing all of your work together. We would like to see the scope of your work, how much you have, and how it would potentially look when exhibited.

The application fee for each artist is non-refundable. The last day to withdraw without forfeiting the booth fee is July 1.

Application Fees

• $35 for all applicants (with a waiver for winners of 3+ Clothesline Merit Awards)
• Double booths require both artists to pay the application fee

Booth Fees

• $330 for standard (10’ x 10’)
• $385 for a corner booth
• $660 for double booth (20’ x 10’)
• $750 for a endcap booth
• $770 for a double booth with the corner

NOTE: application fees are built into the prices for the single and shared booths when applying online.

Artists are required to provide their own tent within their booth spaces. To ensure the safety for everyone, all tents must be secured and weighted.

If you are a returning artist requesting the same space as last year, make sure to submit your application by April 30. If your application is received after this deadline, we cannot guarantee that you will get the same location.

Requests for accessible parking must be indicated on your application by including your NYS permit number. Your permit must be displayed at all times while on MAG grounds. No vehicles will be allowed off the grounds on Sunday until all pedestrians have cleared the premises. Please be mindful of this and plan accordingly.

Up to two artists may share a booth. When applying online, artists have the choice to choose a single booth (with one artist fee built into the price) or a shared booth (with two artist fees built into the price) for each kind of booth. If submitting a paper application, each artist must submit a separate application with the $35 application fee and the appropriate percentage of the booth fee.

Each artist must submit the requested materials for juror review. If one artist is not accepted into the show, the other artist is responsible for the entire booth fee. There is one parking space allotted per booth.

Booth assignments will not be made until the Clothesline team has received all fees from all artists. Booth numbers and other pertinent information will be updated on the website starting in August.

The last day to withdraw without forfeiting the booth fee is July 1.

Three M&T Bank Clothesline artists will receive awards recognizing extraordinary quality, craftsmanship, creativity and/or outstanding presentation. Each winner will receive a cash prize of $300. MAG will also recognize one first-time exhibitor based on the same criteria who will receive a cash prize of $100.

Judging will begin at 10 am on Saturday morning. All artists’ booths will be viewed. Winners will be announced live on WXXI (91.5 FM) at 2:45 pm that day.