Painted Gardens Art Fair 2026

Rules/Regulations
RULES/REGULATIONS/ELIGIBILITY:

1. This event is open to all artists 18 years of age and older.
2. All work must be of original design and created by the accepted artist(s).
3. NOT eligible for entry are mass-produced items, items made from molds, kits, or other commercial methods. Selling of promotional items (t-shirts, mugs, magnets etc.) is not allowed.  NO buy/sell (items purchased for re-sale).
4. Invited artists must be present to exhibit and manage their displays during the art festival. Representatives may not attend in place of the artist.
5. Invited artists may display work only in the media categories in which they are accepted. 
6. Artists may apply in up to two categories. If artists would like to exhibit work produced in a second media category, he/she can apply again in a different media category using the same artist's profile. A separate jury fee will be charged. EXCEPTIONS:  when applying in ceramics, glass, wood and metal.  Please see media category descriptions for explanation.  
7. If two or more persons collaborate to produce original work, each person must be identified on the application. A collaborative team producing a single body of work may qualify as a single exhibitor.
8. The jury committee reserves the right to move work to the appropriate category if it has been entered in the wrong category on the festival application.
9. Artists are limited to the booth space(s) they were assigned; booth spaces are non-transferable. Any artist who has not been juried into the event, or has not paid both the jury and booth fees, will not be allowed to exhibit.
10. In the event that festival management cancels the event, artists will be notified as soon as reasonably possible and all fees will be refunded.  EXCEPTION:  any act of God happening immediately prior or during the festival will not result in any refund of fees.
11. Each exhibitor's work will be screened periodically throughout the event by event management to determine if the art displayed differs in any significant manner to the information and images submitted on the application. The judgment of event management will be final, and no refunds of jury or booth fees will be given. 
12. The application jury committee consists of experienced artists using a well-defined scoring system.
13. Any hazardous displays or offensive art violations will be closed and booths removed from the event as determined by event management.  NO fees will be refunded.  Please keep in mind that this is a family-friendly event, and no inappropriate or vulgar displays will be allowed.
14. Artists are responsible for having active insurance coverage of their own artwork and displays.  Festival management, volunteers and/or sponsors will not be held responsible for any damage due to weather or other unforeseen incidents.
15. Artist's pets, open flames, and loud music played in the booth will NOT be permitted at any time during the event.  EXCEPTION:  any certified service animal.
16. Sale or discount signs and any hand-written signs are prohibited.
17. Exhibitors must park in designated artist parking areas during event hours.  A parking tag will be provided and must be visibly displayed in all parked vehicles for the duration of the festival.

ALL DECISIONS BY THE JUDGES AND EVENT MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS ARE FINAL!



MEDIA CATEGORIES:

• Ceramics: All original clay work, either functional or decorative, made by shaping and then firing, is entered in this category. If multiple pieces of the same design are displayed, the artist must sign each piece.  If artists include ceramic jewelry in their work, they do not need to submit a separate application for jewelry as long as jewelry is less than 20% of the body of work exhibited in the booth.  
• Digital art: Original work using computer technology to craft or manipulate images. (Traditional photographs taken by a digital device and digitally post-processed should apply in the photography category).
• Drawing: This category includes drawings made with pencil, crayon, ink, charcoal and a variety of other marking media.
• Fiber: All work crafted from fibers such as basketry, embroidery, weaving, leatherwork or tapestry is included in this category. No machine-tooling, machine-screened patterns or miscellaneous forms of mass production are permitted.
• Furniture: Unique, original, hand-crafted items, either functional or decorative.
• Glass: Glass work that is functional or decorative, kiln-formed or created by glass-blowing, molding or casting. Work may be etched or engraved.  If including glass jewelry in work, no need to submit a separate application for jewelry as long as jewelry is less than 20% of body of work in booth. 
• Jewelry:  Artwork created through hand-forging, twisting and fabricating of various materials. All jewelry produced from metal, glass, clay, fiber, paper, plastic, wood or other materials should apply in this category. No commercial casts, molds or production studio work is permitted. 
• Metal: Decorative, functional or sculptural metal artwork created by forging, twisting or fabricating of various metals.  If artist chooses to include metal jewelry in the work, no need to submit a separate application for jewelry, as long as jewelry is less than 20% of body of work in booth.  
• Mixed media: Included in this category would be a two- or three-dimensional piece that incorporates more than one type of physical material in the same piece, including but not limited to, paint, pencil, watercolor, photographs, prints or found objects. 
• Painting: Work in this category includes creation of an image on a flat surface using oils, watercolors or acrylics.
• Pastels: This category includes work using dry or oil pastels.
• Photography: Images must be from original negatives or digital files that the artist has created and processed. Production of prints must be directly supervised by the artist. Photographers are required to disclose both creative and printing processes.
• Printmaking: Hand-pulled original works from a brick, plate, stone or other object are acceptable. Prints must be properly signed and numbered. Reproductions are allowed but must be marked as such.
• Sculpture: Three-dimensional original work done in any medium.
• Wood:  Woodworking primary material must be wood. Original works in wood that are hand-tooled, machine-worked, turned or carved are accepted in the wood category. Wood pieces can be either functional or decorative. If artist chooses to include wood jewelry in the work, no need to submit a separate application for jewelry as long as jewelry is less than 20% of body of work in booth.
• Other: If the work does not fit into any of the above categories, or if the artist has any questions about the rules for a category, please email the festival director, before submission of application, to discuss:  info@summitartfest.org.

BOOTH PHOTO:
The booth photo is very important in the selection process! Booth photos should include a representative sample of the work being presented, and should NOT include artist's name, any signs or images of people. The booth should show a professional display of the artist's work and will count heavily towards acceptance into the festival.

Note: the booth image is a reference, and the artist is not juried in for ALL work represented in the booth image/photo. The artist is juried for the body of work represented in the four images/photos submitted with the application.