Dear artists,
We have been informed by our venue that the dates of our show have to be moved in light of the current COVID situation in Ontario. Though not entirely unexpected, we were hopeful that the show would not have to be moved.
The new dates for the show are September 3 to 26.
This will be a live, in person show - not a virtual show.
Entry has now closed in the Faces and Places categories and we will be jurying the submissions
as per our original schedule. This means that artists will be notified of their acceptance status by no later than April 18.
For those entering the Sculptures category, entrance has been extended to August 1.
If your work is accepted, you will be notified of when and where to drop off your artwork. Although
we do not yet have this worked out, it will most likely be in August. We will hang the show and have our judges award prizes at that time. Judges will not be making their decisions based on digital uploads - they will be viewing the pieces in person.
Those of you who have been with us in the past know that this is the foremost show and sale of representational artwork in Ontario. We know that being a part of it has provided a big boost in many artists’ professional journeys. Produced by the Grand Bend Art Centre, all proceeds go towards supporting artists and artistic endeavours in our community - including many programs for kids. Run entirely by volunteers, this event is the single most important fundraiser we have for our nonprofit organization. We sincerely appreciate your loyalty. We fully realize that we are asking you to hold on to artwork for a period of time because of the delay but hope that you will continue to support us.
We faced rescheduling last year and were still able to produce a very successful show in terms of both sales and attendance. We’re going to do it again!
We know how to put on a show in the face of COVID. All of the protocols will again be in place to ensure the safety of everyone - patrons, volunteers, and artists.
We now have over $12K in awards for artists as well as many special features to make this a fantastic experience for our patrons. As with last year, we know being able to attend what will be one of the first public shows to open when restrictions lift is going to generate a lot of excitement and relief for everyone. We had so very many positive comments from people last year!
You have questions - we’re working on the answers! We felt it most important to inform you of the show’s new dates. Please bear with us as we work out the logistics. For now, the priority is jurying the submissions.
We will keep everyone informed as we move forward. Please do not call the museum. This is our venue but staff there is not able to field specific questions.
We will be updating our website as details are worked out and you can follow us on social media(below) for updates as well.
Thank you!
Paint Ontario Team and the Grand Bend Art Centre
