2023 Open Call for Art is Closed

Art About Agriculture Competition and Touring Exhibition 2023

Submission Deadline: March 5, 2023 at 11:59pm

For 40 years, the Art About Agriculture program at Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences has invited artists throughout the Pacific Northwest to creatively explore the uniquely diverse agricultural and natural resources of our region. Striking a careful balance between agricultural production and conservation, our agriculture and natural resources represent the backbone of resilience for our communities, our food systems, and our environment.

In commemoration of its 40th Anniversary, Art About Agriculture is seeking submissions of art that will help our honored jurors select artwork for this year’s traveling exhibition that speaks to the breadth of agricultural and natural resource research, and its many varied and diverse perspectives across a wide range of artistic mediums.  All artists who draw inspiration from agricultural and natural resource topics, and the people connected to them, are welcome to apply. 

Below we have included links to recent news from College of Agricultural Sciences, with many more articles for inspiration found at The Source webpage.  The diverse areas of research within the College of Agricultural Sciences can be found here: agsci.oregonstate.edu/home/research.  Oregon State University is proud to be among the first research universities in the world to adopt faculty scholarship as creative intellectual work consisting of discovery, development, integration, and artistry.  Under the leadership of President Emeritus Dr. John Byrne, Provost Emeritus Dr. Roy Arnold, Dean Emeritus Dr. Conrad J. Weiser, and Professor Emeritus Gwil Evans the College of Agricultural Sciences approved this adoption in 1993 and OSU as a whole in 1995.

The 2023 tour is scheduled to include Giustina Gallery (Corvallis, OR/OSU), Rogue Gallery & Art Center (Medford, OR), and Portland’5 Centers for the Arts (Portland, OR).

As a world-class leader in agricultural, environmental, and life sciences at Oregon’s Land Grant, Sea Grant, Space Grant, and Sun Grant institution, the College of Agricultural Sciences encourages diverse points of view and for 40 years has invested in visual arts as an important part of its mission.

As the founding College of the state’s land grant university, it is dedicated to serving all Oregonians. As champions of science, the College of Agricultural Sciences embraces differences to find common ground and create opportunity – committed each day to make tomorrow better.

Eligibility:
This regional, juried competition is open to artists living in Alaska, British Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Student artwork completed while enrolled in an educational curriculum is not accepted.

Conditions:
All submissions must relate thematically to agriculture and natural resources. All fine arts and crafts media are eligible for consideration. All approaches welcome.  The large and diverse scope of research affiliated with OSU College of Agricultural Sciences can be found here:  agsci.oregonstate.edu/home/research.

Blind Jury Process:
The jurying process occurs in two parts. Part 1 is the review of art submissions digitally with artist names removed from jury documents.  The jury will then select 45-60 artworks for the tour. In part 2, jurors will nominate purchase awards from the pool of touring artworks for acquisition into the Art About Agriculture Permanent Collection. 

Beyond those artists selected by the jurors, the Directing Curator of Art About Agriculture may invite one or more additional artists to participate in the 2023 Tour.

Art About Agriculture reserves the right to refuse artwork that does not meet the competition standards, or artwork that is beyond the scope or specification of the competition.

Submissions:
May submit up to five artworks. 1-2 sentence description of each piece is encouraged, but not required.  Images should be titled accordingly: First_Last-shortened title-0x0x0in. 3D artworks may submit up to three additional images of different views for each artwork. Please group 3D views in the image title with A, B, C indicators.

Any photos or promotional materials provided by the artist of artwork selected for inclusion in the exhibitions can be used to promote the artwork, exhibitions, or venues.  This includes use in online galleries hosted on OSU websites and/or websites associated with tour venues. All photos and materials used for promotions will acknowledge the artist.