Members’ Shows

The Harlow Gallery hosts two shows dedicated to showcasing work by members of the Kennebec Valley Art Association each year. The first usually falls in the spring or summer, and the second is traditionally in December. Each shows is promoted as an “art show and sale”, which means that gallery visitors may purchase work and take it home the same day. Gallery staff will call the artist whose work was sold so that he or she can bring in a replacement. Some members have sold two or three works during one show in this manner!

Members’ Show Guidelines

As determined by the Exhibition Committee of the Kennebec Valley Art Association for Member’s shows at the Harlow Gallery, 2011 version, updated 2013

1. Framing and Presentation: All work must be ready to hang safely and securely. Clips and sawtooth hangers are unacceptable.  The hanging committee volunteers do not have time to wire or frame your work for you, please do this beforehand.  Works on paper must be framed and under glass or plexiglass for member’s shows.  The KVAA will not accept liability for damage to unframed work under any circumstance.

2. Paperwork: All work must be clearly marked with your name, contact information, title of the work, and price; or, if your work is not for sale, mark it NFS but please include the value for insurance purposes. We make show labels from your entry form, so in order to insure accuracy, entry forms must be legible. Please write neatly!

3. Stick to the Schedule: Late entries put extra demands on our staff; please deliver your work during the appropriate times.  No work can be removed from an exhibit unless it is sold during a cash and carry show; please don’t ask to pick it up before the exhibition ends. It is imperative that your work be picked up during the designated pick-up times. We have no space to store your work. Work that is not picked up in a timely fashion runs the risk of being damaged.

Any piece that is not picked up in time is subject to a $5 per day storage fee. If the work is not picked up within two weeks it will be considered abandoned, and will be sold at our next silent auction. Unforeseen events and emergencies will be honored, but prior arrangements must be made when possible.

4. New Work please: Each piece of art will be limited to one showing at the Harlow Gallery; gallery visitors look forward to seeing new work.  Please don’t submit work that has already been in a show at the Harlow. All work must have been completed within the last three years.

5. Smaller is Better for Member’s Shows: Member’s shows are very popular – the 2011 Spring Members’ Show had just over 100 pieces, which was quite a challenging number to hang.  Even though we love large format art, member’s shows just aren’t the place for it — we have instituted a size limitation as follows (only for 2 dimensional work – sculpture just needs to fit through the door):

No wall hung work may exceed 18″x24″  including the frame (or a total of 432 square inches for none standard support sizes).  Large work will be accepted but if there is a space problem oversize work will be the first to be cut. In other words, if you choose to bring in oversized work we cannot guarantee you a spot in the show.

6. Content Disclaimer: While we fully support freedom of expression on behalf of all artists, we also welcome visitors of all ages to the Harlow Gallery. Therefore we reserve the right to decline to exhibit work with an excessively violent, obscene, explicit or pornographic content. In such cases the Exhibition Committee will review the work in question and make a decision on our behalf.

Following these simple guidelines will insure that your work is included in member’s shows. Please realize that failure to do so may result in the exclusion of your work. Lastly, please be considerate of and pleasant to our staff, volunteers, and interns; unprofessional and disrespectful behavior can be very distracting and counterproductive for all concerned.

Deborah Fahy, Executive Director and Nancy Barron, Program Director