How to Enter Your Art

How to Enter Your Art...

The New England Watercolor Society uses Smarter Entry for most show submissions. Smarter Entry is a web-based competition and call-for-entry management system that we use for all of our competitions. Smarter Entry will handle all of your registration, fee processing, submission, and our own jurying functions.

Please fill out, print & sign this Submission Form -- and tape it to the back of your submitted piece. This helps us to identify you, the title of your piece, the competition you are entering and also lists particular legal notices we are required to disclose.

Once you log into Smarter Entry, please select the show you are submitting to from the list of available competitions. (Please note that you may not be eligible to submit to some competitions in the list.)

Go To SMARTER ENTRY Website

If you are new to Smarter Entry, here are a few tips:

Unlike many submission services, when submitting through Smarter Entry, you pay for your entries first. A submitting artist purchases entry credits for a particular show (called a competition by Smarter Entry). He or she then uses the credits to submit his/her entry or entries.
Where applicable, member discounts are given with a promo code. The promo code is emailed to all current members (included in every member email promoting a biennial show). It must be entered in the Promo Code field when paying for entries to be applied. Member discounts are usually available for biennial shows only (not for NEWS Gallery shows or the Signature Member Show).
Photos of submitted paintings should be sharp and well-lit. Your success depends as much on the quality of the submitted photo as it does on the quality of the art.
- Don't photograph your painting behind glass.
- Don't include mat or frame in your photo.
- Make sure the lighting is as uniform as possible - photographing outdoors on a bright overcast day works well.
- If you can, crop and straighten your photo.
When submitting entry details about your painting, dimensions listed must be framed dimensions, measured to the OUTSIDE OF FRAME.

Please direct email inquiries HERE.
Indicate that your message is regarding New England Watercolor Society.
All inquiries will be answered directly or forwarded to the appropriate party.

Eligibility Rules

IMPORTANT FOR ALL NEWS SHOWS:

No work copied from copywritten material, i.e. image from a card or calendar, and no work using other people’s photo references -- even with permission.
No work partially or wholly painted by another.
No work done in a workshop.
All work must be for sale at the price originally stated on the entry form.
Work must be the same work represented by the submitted digital images.
No altered digital images may be submitted, artwork should be well represented by the image submitted.
Work must be the size represented in the submission form.
Work must not have been exhibited in a previous New England Watercolor Society Show.
Work should have been completed within previous 10 years unless stricter age limit is specified in the show prospectus.
Other restrictions may apply - see prospectus for the show you are submitting to. NEW

NEW ENGLAND WATERCOLOR SOCIETY REGIONAL OPEN SHOW, NORTH AMERICAN OPEN SHOW AND ANNUAL SIGNATURE MEMBERS SHOWS

The New England Regional Open Show, North American Open Show and Signature Members Show will each have a separate prospectus with size restrictions as well as other requirements specific to that show.

Here are surfaces, mediums and presentation requirements for all of the above shows:

A. Surfaces:

Allowed:
Watercolor paper; toned watercolor paper; Yupo and similar synthetic papers, such as Duralar; paper coated with water‐based varnish and gesso; textured paper; illustration board; watercolor board; rice paper.

Not allowed:
Composite paper with embedded materials; wood or composite panels; gallery wrapped or stretched canvas; canvas board; canvas paper or sheets; Aquaboard, Clayboard or other coated wood or composite panel; canvas or other fabrics; metal; glass.

B. Mediums:

Allowed:
Watercolor; gouache; acrylic; acrylic inks, acrylic mediums and watercolor mediums; water‐based ink; casein; egg tempera‐all applied in the manner of watercolor.

Artwork must be dominantly water‐based, with the following allowed as accents only: line & wash; watercolor pencils; collage (water‐based, on or of paper); charcoal; graphite; wax accents and resists; embossing; metallic water‐based paint; water‐based iridescent paints or powders (not glitter).

Unacceptable media:
Pastels; colored pencil other than watercolor pencil; impasto (thickly applied) acrylic and water media; fabrics; digital media or digitally enhanced images; multiple edition prints; sand; glitter; gold or metal leaf; collage from printed materials, newspaper, magazines, etc.; water‐miscible oil paints; photography; reproductions, and alcohol inks.

C. Presentation

Framing and Presentation:

Work must be presented in a professional manner. No broken or damaged frames. Work must be framed in a rectangular frame with the bottom edge square to the floor. Work must be glazed under Plexiglas or similar clear acrylic surface. No glass. No unglazed work accepted. Work may be floated within the frame, or presented with a single or double mat of not less than 2 inches all around. White or off white mats only, liner mat less than 3/8" may be colored. Work must be wired with no wire or hanger showing when hung. No tooth hangers. Frames, Plexi and mat must be clean and in excellent shape!

NEW ENGLAND WATERCOLOR SOCIETY GALLERY SHOWS:

For shows at the New England Watercolor Society Gallery at the Plymouth Center for the Arts in Plymouth, please refer to this prospectus for a complete schedule of shows, rules, and size requirements.
GALLERY PROSPECTUS is available here

In particular, the size restriction of no more than 30 inches in width, including the outside dimensions of the frame. This is a requirement for all New England Watercolor Society Gallery shows, unless otherwise noted.

*** NOTE -- THE WATERCOLOR GONE WILD SHOW WILL HAVE ITS OWN PROSPECTUS, WITH MORE RELAXED REQUIREMENTS (LISTED BELOW)

For the Shows at the NEWS Gallery in Plymouth (except for the Watercolor Gone Wild show)

A. Surfaces:

Allowed:
Watercolor paper; toned watercolor paper; Yupo and similar synthetic papers, such as Duralar; paper coated with water‐based varnish and gesso; textured paper; illustration board; watercolor board; rice paper; So Ho stretched watercolor paper, canvas sheets, canvas paper (no stretched canvas)

Not allowed:
Composite paper with embedded materials; Aquaboard, Clayboard wood or other composite panels; gallery wrapped or stretched canvas; fabrics; metal; glass

B. Mediums:

Allowed:
Watercolor; gouache; acrylic; acrylic inks, acrylic mediums and watercolor mediums; water‐based ink; casein; egg tempera‐all applied in the manner of watercolor.
Artwork must be dominantly water‐based, with the following allowed as accents only: line & wash; watercolor pencils; collage (water‐based, on or of paper); charcoal; graphite; wax accents and resists; embossing; metallic water‐based paint; water‐based iridescent paints or powders (not glitter).

Unacceptable media:

Pastels; colored pencil other than watercolor pencil; impasto (thickly applied) acrylic and water media; fabrics; digital media or digitally enhanced images; multiple edition prints; sand; glitter; gold or metal leaf; collage from printed materials, newspaper, magazines, etc.; water‐miscible oil paints; photography; reproductions, and alcohol inks.

Presentation:

Paintings must be framed. Work may be floated within the frame, or presented with a single or double mat. White or off-white mats and backer-boards are preferred. Other colors will be allowed but must be in keeping with the colors in the artwork. The size of mats and backer-boards must also be compatible with the size of the artwork. Work must be wired with no wire or hanger showing when hung. Work must be glazed under Plexiglas or similar clear acrylic surface. No glass. No unglazed work accepted No tooth hangers. Frames, Plexi and mat must be clean and in excellent shape.

Entries should be no more than 30" wide, including frame.

WATERCOLOR GONE WILD GALLERY SHOW

A. Surfaces Allowed for this show:
Watercolor paper; toned watercolor paper; Yupo and similar synthetic papers, such as Duralar; paper coated with water‐based varnish and gesso; textured paper; illustration board; watercolor board; rice paper; pastel paper; silk; So Ho stretched watercolor paper; mixed media papers; canvas sheets, canvas paper; canvas board; Aquaboard, Gessoboard, Clayboard, and raised panels with wooden sides.

B. Mediums Allowed for this show:

Watercolor; gouache; acrylic; acrylic inks, acrylic mediums and watercolor mediums; water‐based ink; casein; egg tempera.

Note: Work must be predominantly water media. Small accents of non water‐based mediums allowed

Unacceptable media:

Oil and water‐miscible oil paints; photography; reproductions, newspapers and other printed materials.

Presentation for this show:

Work must be presented in a professional manner. Work may be presented with or without a frame, but must be wired with no wire or hanger showing when hung. No saw tooth hangers. Frames, Plexi and mat, if used, must be clean and in excellent shape. Paintings may be unglazed, but should be protected in some way (varnish, wax, or similar coating). No glass allowed.

When submitting entry details about your painting, dimensions listed must be framed dimensions (if frame is used), measured to the OUTSIDE OF FRAME.

Entries should be no more than 30" wide, including frame.