Rising Stars 2021: Call For Early Career Makers

Rising Stars is a curated, national platform to foster and champion new talent, early career makers, students and graduates from BA and MA crafts, design and applied arts programmes across the UK. Rising Stars offers new makers a first step into the market place, through a curated, selling exhibition.

The programme will consist of the Rising Stars exhibition at New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham, that enables new makers to access the market place and collectors; professional development including knowledge transfer on topics such as pricing guidance, advice on marketing your work and how to gain and manage new connections, and a catalogue to act as a promotional tool for the selected makers.

The 2021 focus will be on supporting new makers in the post COVID-19 market place. We recognise that there has been limited access to studios. Therefore, we also accept proposals that include prototypes of new work, available for commissions and will provide advice as required.

We are delighted to present a professional development award of £500 and a solo exhibition at New Ashgate in 2022 for one of the makers in the exhibition. The winner will be selected by a panel of judges that consists of the project partners, the New Ashgate Gallery, University for the Creative Arts and Making Goode.

Key dates:

Exhibition at New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham, 13 March - 17 April 2022
A free professional development day with Dan Goode, Making Goode, at New Ashgate Gallery
A free professional development symposium at University for the Creative Arts, Farnham
A private view at New Ashgate Gallery, 12 March 2021 – subject to COVID-19 restrictions.

There will also be an opportunity to be invited for a curated Rising Stars showcase with Making Goode at Handmade Chelsea in November 2021. Details of this opportunity including fees to participate will be issued in summer 2021.

We comply with government guidance and some events may be held online, if COVID-19 restrictions so require.

Submissions are invited from:

Early career artists and makers (early career is: less than three years in business and those still studying: a business is deemed when you have first registered with HMRC/or sold work)
This is a selling showcase, therefore those opportunity is for artists and makers looking to work with galleries in the future.

How to apply

Application form – download it at:https://bit.ly/2Jat48F or request it by email: gallery@newashgate.org.uk
3-4 images of the proposed work(s) or their prototypes (JPEG, 1-2MB in size, including full image captions and a title of the artwork in a file name).
CV Word or PDF format, 2 A4 pages maximum
Statement about your work of no more than 250 words
Indicate how you wish for your work to be displayed for example: framed, on a plinth, in a display case.

The deadline is 10 January 2021, 10am. There is no fee to apply.

Criteria

Email your application to risingstars.exhibition@gmail.com having your name in the subject field
We regret that we are unable to accept late or incomplete applications
The gallery takes a commission of 50% for any sold artwork
2d work (works on paper) is required to be framed in plain frames.

For informal enquiries email us at: gallery@newashgate.org.uk / 01252 713208.

Please do not send longer statements, additional images or website links unless requested. Successful applicants will be covering their own travel and delivery costs and collection costs for unsold artworks.

Venue

Rising Stars is managed by the New Ashgate Gallery. Originally established in the late 1950s, the New Ashgate Gallery is located in Farnham, the World Craft City, in a seventeenth century listed building in Waggon Yard. During the years, the gallery has administered the profits from craft and art sales to create prizes and scholarships, and for the purchase of artworks for national museums. It was one of the first provincial galleries to show artists with an international reputation as well as supporting local talent. Today, the New Ashgate Gallery is a destination for buying the best of affordable contemporary craft by established and emerging makers. The Gallery curates an exciting programme of changing exhibitions and has an affordable gift shop. As a not-for-profit charity, it fosters emerging makers in partnership with the University for the Creative Arts through mentoring and exhibitions such as the Rising Stars project. It also supports diverse community participation through a programme of gallery and outreach workshops.

Rising Stars 2021 is organised by the New Ashgate Gallery in partnership with the University for the Creative Arts and Making Goode. It is supported by Billmeir Charitable Trust.

For more Information: