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Date/Time
Date(s) - 06/26/2026 - 07/31/2026
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Location
Bowen Arts Center
Categories
Every year, the Bowen endeavors to bring the creative community together for healthy competitions and comradery. And this year, please JOIN US for this juried opportunity – WESTERN STYLE – celebrating the American West from coast to coast. WIN PRIZES!
This curated event will be on display from June 27 to July 31, 2026. It is open for all ages of artists and photographers to enter up to 3 works taking inspiration from the style and creations of our great western scenes and culture – even if it’s located east of the Mississippi. And this special exhibition takes place prior to Dawsonville’s very own RODEO sponsored and hosted by the Rotary Club of Dawson County.
Our ENTRY FORM will be available shortly… Entry is open until May 2, 2026 and Entry Fee is $35 for up to 3 entries.
We expect entries to represent an extremely wide range of artistic skill and ability. To select items to be in the exhibit, there is a review of over-all artistic excellence of all entries. To determine that artistic excellence, these components were considered heavily: composition/design, focal point, use of light/color, originality, creativity, feeling, and choice of subject matter. When a work is not selected for an exhibit it does not necessarily mean that the jury does not like or respect it. As with any competition, that line falls is always, at least partially, determined by space limitations.
The major goal of the Bowen is to both encourage and challenge artists to continuously strive for artistic excellence. If your entry was not accepted for this exhibit, it should not be taken as a defeat but should be considered simply as a challenge to continue to stretch for a higher level of artistic skill and “eye” for excellence. We encourage artists and photographers to continue their path which leads to the rewards of excellence and to keep “throwing your hat in the ring” of competitions. Competitions are a healthy component of the growth process, creating opportunities to set and achieve goals, setting forth examples to follow, and rewarding excellence! [excerpts from Salon Int’l].
Most Judges will review for the following criteria (in no particular order, as provided by one of our favorite judges, Amanda Shelnutt):
- A successful composition, display of skill and overall artistic quality.
- An exemplary understanding of technique and execution of medium/media.
- Understanding of theme (if any).
- Originality in concept or selection of subject.
- Individuality of style, a sense of place, sense of humor, or other emotion effectively conveyed in the piece. A sense of joy in creation!
- Proper finishing and readiness to present work for display- including but not limited to framing/mounting, varnishing, finishing the edges of a gallery wrap, etc.
- The small “stuff”- for example, is the work signed? Is it signed in a way that is a distraction from the piece? Is it lacking a signature entirely?
