ABOUT THE JUROR – SUSANNA COFFEY

Susanna Coffey has been a Visiting Professor of Painting in Columbia University’s School of Visual Art since 2013. She recently retired as the F.H. Sellers Professor in Painting at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Coffey received her BFA magna cum laude from the University of Connecticut and MFA from Yale University School of Art. A respected figurative painter, her works in self-portraiture are investigations of the iconic human head. This work is driven by questions about what a portrait image can mean. Meticulously observed, her image appears in many guises and environments. Some portraits seem almost entirely abstract with only the barest suggestion of a human face. Night Painting, a book of Coffey’s nocturnal landscapes with essays, poems and prose poems by Dr. Carol Becker, Brice Brown, Jane Coffey, Jane Kenyon and Mark Strand was recently published in a second edition by MAB Books. Currently she is working with The Leroy Neiman Center for Print Studies on a series of woodcut illustrations for Apostolos Athanassakis’ English translation of The Homeric Hymn to Demeter. Coffey’s self-portraits are in the collections of The Art Institute of Chicago, The National Portrait Gallery, National Academy of Design, The Hood Museum, The Honolulu Museum of Art, Minneapolis Museum of Art, The Weatherspoon Art Museum, the Yale University Art Gallery, and others. This year she was one of the recipients of the “Artist x Artist Award” given by the Hirschhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Other awards include the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, the National Endowment for the Arts Award, and the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award. Her exhibitions have been written about in The New York Times, Art in America, Art News, the New Yorker, Hyperallergic, and other publications. She is represented In New York by Steven Harvey Fine Arts Projects, Alpha Gallery in Boston, and Galeria Isabel Ignacio in Seville Spain.

THE EXHIBITION THEME: NOCTURNE

This year’s exhibition will have a theme, chosen by the Juror, “Nocturne”. The word “nocturne”, meaning “night” is usually associated with musical composition. These works in the European canon are often short, dreamy and sonically melodic and meant to evoke feelings of quietude, serenity and solitude. As all of us on Planet Earth experience hours of darkness, most cultures have created such compositions. The Carnatic music of India gives us several categories of the raga that address many aspects and subthemes of nighttime experiences. In the visual arts there are many works that are focused on experiences we might have, or scenes we might observe, in the hours from dusk to dawn. A sampling of painting’s canon shows the breadth of the “nocturne” theme in the variety of experiences, moods and interpretations inspired by it: Edward Hopper brings us to urban dwellers’ post-midnight hours. Edvard Munch’s night is one of anxiety. Georgia O’Keefe’s night landscapes show us the magic of nature. Henry Ossawa Tanner invites us to witness the mystical. Mark Rothko’s canvases envelope one in meditative quietude, while Whistler shows us cities that glitter and shimmer with reflections. Katsushika Oei’s portrait of a young woman captures her painting quietly by lamplight. Walter Sickert’s take on night is much less gentle. Lee Krasner’s Night Creatures suggests that dreaming may not be tranquil or restful. Joan Miro’s night is an illuminated and playful time, while the Bahu Master’s vision involves times of romance and eroticism. Mir Sayyid Ali’s Nighttime in a City (1540) is an entire manuscript devoted to the nocturnal goings on of his city, Tabriz. Likewise, sculpture and other media are replete with imagery associated with the nocturnal world: of peaceful repose, the stuff of nightmares in bed or elsewhere, and more.

The Exhibition will take place in First Street Gallery’s new Chelsea location at:
547 West 27th Street, Suite 514 • New York, NY 10001

INFORMATION FOR ENTRANTS:

ELIGIBILITY
Open to U.S. resident artists at least 18 yrs. old. Exception: Artists currently represented by First Street Gallery.

• Eligible Works/Media: ORIGINAL oils, acrylics, watercolors, pastels, drawings, prints, photography, mixed media, collage, assemblage, construction, and sculpture in any medium. No giclées or similar reproductions.
• Size & Weight Limits: All Wall-Hung Work (2D or 3D): May not exceed 38 inches in height OR width including any frame (ie.38×38 inches max). Maximum depth from wall: 10 inches. Maximum weight: 30 lbs. 2D work must be suitably framed (or sides cleanly finished or painted), wired, ready to hang. Works on paper MUST be framed under plexi-glass or glass. For works that will be (but are not already) framed, measure the work and estimate total framed size. Make note of your ‘framed’ estimate, so the work does not exceed the size limits. .
• Free Standing sculpture (3D): Maximum width or depth of sculpture is 30 inches. No height limit. Maximum weight is 50 lbs.. Sculptors must provide floor stand with maximum footprint of 30 x 30 inches. The gallery has a small number of stands available for sculpture. NO work can be hung from ceiling or pipes.

ACCEPTANCE

• Work accepted into the show may be refused if it does not conform to the entered image or exceeds size or weight limits. Absolutely NO substitutions of accepted works. All work must remain in the gallery throughout the show.

SALES

The gallery will take NO commission on sales. Work not for sale must be marked “N.F.S.” No P.O.R. sales.

ENTRY FEE

The fee is $40 for 1–3 works, $5 for each additional work, up to 6 works total. Entry fees are non-refundable.

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS (For the Entry Form)

All entries must be submitted electronically. Judging done entirely from digital images.

• Resolution & File Type: Images must be 72 dpi JPEGs (.jpg) file. No other formats will be accepted.
• Image Density (Pixels per inch): Must be at least 600 pixels/in. (on the smallest side) but not greater than 1400 pixels/in. (for largest side), whether a horizontal or vertical image. The gallery cannot correct or resize any images.
• Maximum File Size for Any Image File is: 2 MB.
• Size of Artworks Being Submitted: must be given in inches. *Height must be given before width, whether the work is a vertical or a horizontal. For (3D) works – whether wall hung or freestanding, provide height x width x depth + weight (lbs.) The gallery will not correct artwork dimension errors. Entry form must be filled out completely. Before uploading, please confirm that your files are labeled properly, meet technical requirements and can be opened. We recommend saving images to your Desktop so you can view and change file names. Failure to follow instructions may result in disqualification of your entry.

IMAGE FILE LABELING

• For 2D works: JPEG images MUST BE labeled as follows: YOUR last name_first name_ARTWORK # that corresponds with that work’s placement on the Entry Form (ARTWORK#1, 2, 3 etc.):
  Example:
  Work #1 smith_joe_1.jpg
  Work #2 smith_joe_2.jpg etc.
• For 3D Sculpture: You MUST Submit two views of EACH work – an Installation view and a Detail image (or Alternative side or view) – at no extra cost. Label the TWO images for 3D work as follows: YOUR last name _first name_ ARTWORK NUMBER that corresponds with the work’s placement on the Entry Form (ARTWORK 1, 2, 3 etc.), followed by ‘a’ for the Installation view and ‘b’ for the Detail or Alternative view.
  Example
  Work #1 smith_joe_1a.jpg
  smith_joe_1b.jpg
  Work #2: smith_joe_2a.jpg
  smith_joe_2b.jpg, etc.

Files which are mislabeled or lack the artist’s name will not be viewed by the juror.

DELIVERY OF WORK

• Hand-delivered work will be accepted at the gallery ONLY on Wednesday, July 26, 11 AM–6 PM.
• Shipped work must arrive at the gallery Tuesday–Friday, July 19–21 in a reusable container. Pre-paid shipping arrangements must be made through UPS’ or FedEx’ websites or with other shippers who will deliver and pick up work at the gallery. No U.S. Postal Service or COD returns. DO NOT send check, stamps, or credit card information for return of work. Entrants whose work is accepted into the show will receive detailed information about installation wiring/fixtures; available stands; packaging and shipping for delivery and return etc.
  Please Note: Fragile or unprotected work requiring a professional preparator’s expertise should not be submitted. Any work that arrives damaged may not be shown.

RETURN

• Hand-delivered work must be picked up on on Saturday, August 26, 5–6 PM (close of show) or Monday, August 28, 11 AM–6 PM The gallery accepts no responsibility for work not retrieved on pick-up dates. After 30 days, the gallery may dispose of the work.
• Shipped works will be returned by Friday, September 1.

LIABILITY

Great care will be taken with all work, but artists are responsible for insuring their own pieces if they wish. First Street Gallery will not be responsible for any loss or damage to work while on the premises or in transit to or from the gallery. The payment of the entry fee will serve as your acceptance of the terms and conditions stated in this prospectus. Submission of an entry to this exhibition shall be understood to constitute an agreement on the part of the artist to the terms and conditions stated in this prospectus.

EVENT SCHEDULE

Download the Prospectus in PDF format & Print.

Want More Assistance? Click Here for Entry Checklist.”