ART GUIDELINES

The following guidelines are intended to assist artists who enter FSWS juried shows understand and follow the Bylaws requirement that all submitted entries must be your original work. FSWS relies on your personal integrity and judgment to determine whether your work qualifies or not. FSWS will also use these guidelines when evaluating a painting that is challenged for a lack of originality in a FSWS juried show.

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1. If a photo reference is used, you must have either taken and composed the image yourself, or have received written permission to use it.

2. The idea or concept for the painting must be predominantly your own. Although the subject, the idea or the concept for a painting may have been done before, such as a still life, a landscape, and such, original entries in FSWS shows must be based on your own ideas, colors, composition, viewpoint and personal style. If the painting isn’t a direct copy of another artist’s work, and as long as your own personal style and viewpoint are expressed in the painting, it is most likely that your entry will be fine.

3. Paintings that are done under step by step instruction in a class or workshop setting are not considered your original work. These paintings often rely on the professional guidance of the instructor, who sometimes provides the image itself, and thus does not reflect your own exclusive personal and original work.

4. If you have submitted your work for critiques and you may or may not have followed the comments and suggestions of others, you may enter your painting into FSWS juried shows – as long as you consider the painting to be predominantly your own work.

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