Wildlife Artist of the Year 2013 - Call for Entries #1: David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation

There are TWO Wildlife Artist of the Year art competitions in the UK - the one run by the BBC and the one run by The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation (DSWF).  Both have now issued their Calls for Entries for their 2013 competitions.

The same but different!

I'm going to run posts providing an overview of the respective Calls for Entries for these two competitions back to back on this blog for ease of reference

• TODAY: The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation Wildlife Artist of the Year 2013 Competition (DS WAY)
• TOMORROW: the BBC Wildlife Artist of the Year 2013 Competition (BBC WAY) - see my post Wildlife Artist of the Year 2013 - Call for Entries #2: BBC

Each post will use the same format to summarise the terms and conditions and how to enter the different art competitions for ease of reference of those wildlife artists who anticipate entering either or both of these competitions.  They will each spell out:

• where you can find the rules of entry and any additional information about the competition
• who can enter
• what you can submit (and, as important, what is ineligible)
• how to enter
• the deadline
• details of the exhibition and other ways in which artwork is displayed

At the end of tomorrow's post I'll also be providing a summary of the similarities and the differences between the two competitions.

Call for Entries - Summary re. The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation Wildlife Artist of the Year 2013 

2012 DSWAY Competition ExhibitionKaren Lawrence-Rowe accepted the £10,000 top prize from
wildlife artist and conservationist, David Shepherd CBE
and conservationist Mark Carwardine

Last year the exhibition at the Mall Galleries raised over £60,000 for endangered wildlife and as always was both popular and enjoyed critical success.  This is a competition which is sits well on the CV of any wildlife artist whose work gets selected for exhibition!

It's good to see this competition providing a very precise description for original art.  Those who copy photos taken by other people without any original input from the artist need not apply!

This year the prize-giving and exhibition will be held in London between 2nd-8th June 2013.

Below you'll find my summary and commentary on the Call for Entries - which highlights aspects you need to pay especial attention to

Prizes: The Winner gets a very significant cash prize

• Overall Winner £10,000 cash prize and title 'Wildlife Artist of the Year 2013' 
• Overall Runner-Up £1,000 cash prize. 
• Remaining Category Winners £500 each.

Deadlines for entries: The closing date is 21st January 2013

Who can submit:
This is an international open competition. It regularly attracts entries from overseas. Entry is open to eligible submissions from:

• both amateur and professional artists.  No distinction is made in the judging for the relative status of the artist.
• artists aged 17 years or over (ie 17 years of age by the closing date – 21st Jan 2013). 

You can submit:

• work completed within the last five years by the entrant
• original work ie Artists using exact reference from another professional artist or photographer risk having their work rejected.
• multiple entries
• any medium except photography and film

You CANNOT submit: 

• Work completed before 21st January 2008 is ineligible for entry and cannot be submitted
• Work which is not original to the artist
• photographs, video or electronic images - they will all be disqualified
• work which has been sold - either before entry or before the exhibition.  The whole purpose of the exhibition is to raise fund to help protect endangered wildlife

Categories for entries

All entries must correspond to one of the seven categories:

• Endangered Wildlife - any wild animal or plant that is threatened or endangered nationally or internationally 
• Wild Places - any scene or landscape showing the natural environment at its most beautiful or dramatic 
• Wildlife in Action - any wild animal jumping, fighting, flying or any other interesting behaviour 
• Wildlife in 3D - sculpture in any medium 
• Go Wild - let your imagination go wild! 
• Young & Wild - open to 17-25 year olds covering all six categories 
• Wild Life - any wild animals including birds and plants in Britain or anywhere around the world (Botanical artists please note!)

What it costs to submit an entry:

• £10 per entry: for DSWF members and Young & Wild category entrants
• £25 per entry for non-members of the DSWF. Click this link to become a Friend of the DWSF www.davidshepherd.org

Other important terms and conditions

• Sale price will be negotiated with the artist but the final decision will be made by DSWF.  I think this is very sensible. The reality is that the people who organise this competition know a lot about wildlife art sells for.  In putting this condition on the competition they're behaving like a gallery which wants to sell art. It allows them to discuss a price with a potential buyer - much as galleries do. I'm assuming the condition relates to frustration on the part of the competition organisers because artists are failing to identify the market price for their work - pitching either 
• too high (which means it fails to sell - it's a tactic often used by those who don't really want to sell a work) or 
• too low (generally because the artist knows little about what their art is worth or what it will sell for in a London gallery - but the net effect it makes less than it could do for the cause!)
• Proceeds to the artist for works sold
• in the exhibition are split 50:50 with the artist during the exhibition and for one month afterwards
• from the website are split 70% artist and 30% DSWF for as long as that promotion continues. (Note that the 2012 exhibition is still up on the website with all the details of the price and how to buy - they are very serious about selling your art!)
• Copyright: By entering WAY you agree to grant DSWF 
• a non-exclusive license to reproduce the artwork for any purpose in connection with the competition including publicity, marketing, fundraising and exhibitions. 
• the first option/right to publish a limited edition print of the work by agreement with the artist up until the end 2013.

Digital Entry

• digital entry is a mandatory requirement - no other methods of submission will be accepted
• online: recommended image size 2560 x 1920 pixels; file size no larger than 6MB plus  very clear file name
• by post: jpeg image on CD plus completed and signed entry form plus cheque
• No allowance will be made for poor digital images or bad quality photographs.  Which I take to mean if they cannot see an excellent image of your work it's a waste of time submitting it no matter how good the work might be in reality.
• allow up to 28 days for clearance of a payment by cheque - and note no entries will not be accepted until full payment is made.  That means effectively that those intending to use a cheque for payment need to submit their entry BEFORE CHRISTMAS
• Delivery, collection, shipping costs and insurance is the responsibility of the artist.

Selected artists: Those chosen to exhibit their work will be selected by an independent panel of judges, to include artists and conservationists chosen by the competition organisers. 

If you have a question review the terms and conditions - and then if you still have a question I suggest you contact DSWF by emailway@davidshepherd.org .

Links

• MAKING A MARK: Wildlife Artist of the Year - Karen Laurence-Rowe
• MAKING A MARK: Wildlife Artist of the Year 2012 - Call for Entries (x2)
• You can see other blogs posts about wildlife art on this blog by clicking this link - wildlife art
• Wildlife and Natural History Art - Resources for Artists