Welcome to the tenth year of the Ogden Arts Festival. En plein air is a french term meaning “in the open air”. Artists in the Plein Air competition create works of art while out in the elements of nature. The plein air division of the festival consists of two periods during which artists create art in the out of doors and then show and offer them for sale to the public. Acceptable mediums are watercolor, oil, and acrylic paints. Pastel, pencil and other mediums not using electronic or photographic devices are also eligible. All pieces in the competition must be offered for sale to the public with minimum prices set by the artists that create them. There are two juried competitions in which the artist is eligible for prize money. The central Ogden area has a surprising number of places of natural beauty and inspiration needed for plein air. We anticipate you will enjoy working creatively in our city.
Please note: in the spirit of maintaining a pure plein air event, we ask that you create your work outside, in plein air, without the use of any electronic or photographic devices.
The Quick Draw Competition takes place during the Ogden Arts Festival, Saturday, June 8th from 9:00 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. During that period, as festival attendees watch, artists create in the vicinity of the festival. Boundaries for the Quick Draw Competition will be within the Festival and immediate downtown area: from Union Station to Washington Blvd and between 24th and 26th Streets. After 12:30 p.m., the pieces are judged, awarded prizes and then auctioned through the silent auctioning process in the Union Station Grand Lobby.
Details: The Quick Draw Competition is a single division with a nonrefundable entry fee of $25.00 per registered surface. Artists provide their own surface and may register as many surfaces as they can complete in the 3 hour time period. Fees are nonrefundable and due at time of registration. They help fund the prize money for the competition. Before beginning work, as early as 9:00 a.m., the surface is stamped at the Quick Draw desk in the Union Station Grand Lobby. Finished pieces must be checked back in before 12:30 p.m. All artistic work on your surface must be completed after the surface is stamped and before being checked back in. Finished pieces are required to be framed per medium standards and ready for hanging with wire hangers at the back of the piece.
Late registration and surface stamping will take place in the Union Station Grand Lobby, Saturday June 8th from 9:00 am to 10:00 am. You will be asked to indicate a minimum price you will accept for your work(s). Please confirm that your canvas/paper is stamped and registration complete prior to leaving the registration desk. Competition begins as soon as you are registered and your surface stamped.
The juried portion of the Plein Air Competition consists of a professional and an amateur division. Register for one of the two divisions. Registration fees are $25 for each professional division surface and $15 for each amateur division surface. Artists may enter more than one surface. Fees are nonrefundable and due at time of registration and help fund the prize money for the competition. Participants provide their own painting surface which must be stamped before beginning work and verified for contest authentication when the surface is returned. All work entered in the Plein Air juried competition must be exhibited and offered for sale in the Plein Air Silent Auction that begins at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday June 6, 2013. The exhibition of all juried pieces will be in Gallery 51 of the historic Union Station. Artists will indicate a minimum price for which they are willing to sell their piece(s). During the auction, art enthusiasts can bid on these freshly created masterpieces beginning at the artist’s minimum price. Paintings will also be offered for immediate sale at a premium price for those wishing to solidify their purchases without waiting through the bidding period. The bidding period is from Thursday June 6th at 5:30 p.m. until the festival winds down at 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 8th.
Participants are encouraged to register early. All artists must be registered before their surface will be stamped. The deadline for registration is midnight May 15, 2013. Artists who register by this date will be featured on our website with links to your website.
2. By mail: send a check in an envelope with your name and contact information, postmarked by May 1, 2013 and mailed to:
Ogden Arts Festival
2501 Wall Avenue
Ogden UT 84401
Attention: Plein Air
3. Over the phone by calling 801-393-9890
Later registrations may be made over the phone at any time before 4 p.m. June 4th for an additional $10 per surface.
Details: The juried Plein Air competition working period will begin Friday May 31st at 8:30 a.m. and continue through 5 p.m. Tuesday June 4th. Before beginning work on your surface, you must have registered and have your surface stamped at Ogden Blue, a local art supply establishment located at 175 Historic 25th Street, Ogden, Utah. They will begin stamping surfaces on Friday May 31st at 8:30 am and continuing during normal operating hours; Monday—Friday, 8:30 am to 7 pm, Saturday 10 am to 4 pm. (Closed Sunday). Ogden Blue will only stamp the surfaces of those that have already registered through one of the three registration methods listed above.
The working period will end and finished entries must be returned to Union Station's Gallery 51 between the hours of 11 am and 5 pm, Tuesday, June 4th. Finished pieces are required to be framed per medium standards and ready for hanging with wire hangers at the back of the piece. Only those pieces properly registered and stamped at Ogden Blue will be accepted for the competition. Upon returning submission(s), each artist is required to indicate a minimum price he or she will accept for their work(s).
Boundaries for the juried Plein Air are set to capture the historic architecture and natural beauty of the downtown Ogden area; artists may paint from 12th Street to 36th Street and from West Ogden to the peak of Mount Ogden.
The Ogden Arts Festival has arranged for a judging panel to establish the awarding of prizes. They will be awarded as follows: