Show Season!

Drum roll please………………………………..

Announcing, with excitement and long awaited anticipation SHOW SEASON!!!

white peacock butterfly painted in watercolor technique

I have been extraordinarily busy in my studio this summer getting prepared for this show season.

I set myself a goal of getting into a large juried show and DID IT! That being said, now that I’ve done it I’m a complete bundle of nerves and exhaustion. What is a juried show you ask? Juried means “judged”. It is a process that artists go through to gain entrance into a reputable art show. As an artist one submits an application package which includes representative photos of one’s art work and a fee. A jury which is comprised of an established and reputable artist (or panel of artists) reviews your application and considers it compared to other applications and also considers their particular event and decides whether you “get in” or not. Selection is balanced between quality, applicant package, applicant reputation and making sure there is a good variety of mediums for the show. If you are accepted you earn the privilege of paying for a booth and exhibiting during the show.

Not all of the shows I do are juried and that is fine but a juried show comes with the added burden of making sure your products are “up to snuff” and the assurance that the event has done their duty of ensuring a quality art environment in which to sell. So, the big one for me is the event in Louisville at the beginning of September. It’s a fairly new show in that this is the third year they have run the event. It is my first ever large two-day event and I’m in complete freak out mode because they are expecting a HUUUUUGE crowd. Last year’s event had 50,000 people attend over two days. I don’t even know how to plan for that. Hopefully I have enough product to sell to those that want my art. Let’s just say, I have as much as I can possibly have created in the time given as a one-person art studio! 

I do have some new things rolling out of my studio as I continue to hone my craft. The most recent development is a line of fine art creations using glass as the canvas. I’m using traditional painting techniques with enamels and a fantastic water color technique that I’m exploring in my beloved botanical and insect themes. That’s how I created our friend the white peacock butterfly at the lead of this blog!

Sculptural elements are also developing with floral arrangements and 3-D enameled butterflies. If you want a more real-time look at these things, find my Instagram and Facebook feeds as I post photos of what is going on fairly regularly. For now, here’s where to find me this fall:

Big Four Bridge Arts Festival, Louisville, KY September 7-8 https://bigfourbridgeartsfestival.com/

Art on the Wabash, West Lafayette, IN September 22 https://artonthewabash.wordpress.com/

Gallery Walk featured artist at Main Street Books, Lafayette, IN September 27th

Harrison Band Craft Show, West Lafayette, IN November 23 http://www.harrisonbandcraftshow.com/

Unitarian Universalist Holiday Art Show, West Lafayette, IN December 6-7 

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Emily Ohland

Emily Ohland is a fused glass artist who lives with her husband Matt, and her three sons, in West Lafayette, Indiana.

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