Let’s start with an admission.
Most of us are not writers – we create craft! We find our happy space with fiber, clay, or metal in our hands (or something else! Our members do an amazing variety of work). But inevitably, during craft show application season, we do a lot of writing. Since the Guild’s own craft show applications are opening soon, let’s take a look at the kind of writing we ask for, and the kinds of answers that are the most helpful.
What We Ask For
Craft Description. Please provide a short description of your medium and work. Refrain from adjectives such as beautiful, unique or one-of-a-kind. Instead, use words that explain your original work to fellow experts.
Process Description. Tell us how you do your work: a detailed description of process, technique, and materials including assembly/finishing. How much of the finished product do you make yourself?
What We Want to Read
The first rule of writing (in my opinion, anyway) is know your audience. We’ve given you a cheat-sheet on that, too, in our previous posts on what it’s like to be a juror and what is a blind selection process. But let’s do a quick recap.
Our jurors (10-15 master craftspeople with combined expertise in every medium that will be juried) come to the Guild to do a marathon day of viewing & scoring. And when I say marathon, I mean they may see as many as 500 applications in that single day.
As you can intuit, that means the key rule when writing for our application is be brief.
Craft Description
As each application is shown, the craft description is read. This should be 5 sentences or less. If you submit more information than that, we’re not going to read it to the jury (because we have 500 applications to get through!), and you miss out on a chance to talk about your work. This should be absolutely fluff-free. Let me give some examples (I fabricated these, by the way):
Helpful:
Hand-fabricated fine jewelry, mostly in silver, using semi-precious stones. Most components are handmade (except the chains). I use engraving and repousse for texture.
Not Helpful:
My jewelry is inspired by nature. My magpie instinct urges me to compile and collect artifacts and layer wire in a way that mimics nests and evokes a warm sense of home.
See the difference? Your images, if they’re great, speak for themselves. We just want to know: what did you make it out of? Are there key techniques you use? Does your work conform to our rules? You don’t have to avoid using technical language – there will be plenty of experts present. If a fiber expert doesn’t understand repousse, one of the jewelry experts can chip in and explain. That makes it a little bit easier, hopefully!
Process Description
If the jury has deeper questions about the work, then this paragraph is read. It functions essentially as a way for us to double-check whether the work conforms to our rules. This section can be longer, but it should still be fairly short, no more than 10 sentences.
Helpful:
I draft a basic line drawing on paper (a cartoon) and transfer the cartoon to the glass. I use hand-mixed powdered glass paint that is then kiln fired. I cut the glass, copper, solder, drill, and piece together the final piece with brass fittings. I pay special attention to the back side of the piece – it may continue telling the story by providing a different perspective for the viewer.
Or:
I take digital images, which I then adjust on the computer. I print the images on a variety of papers, but always using archival pigment based inks in limited editions of 500. Mats are archival and the glass is UV protective. During the framing stage, my employee does the majority of the work.
Not Helpful:
100% made by me.
Or:
My work is inspired by feminine, floral shapes. I immerse myself in botanical gardens before choosing how to marry the modern aesthetic with traditional sewing techniques.
If you work in a studio that’s large enough to have employees, it’s especially important for us to understand who is doing which stages of the process. If you combine ready-made materials into your work, we also need to understand what proportion of the work is transformed by your creativity.
In Conclusion
Hopefully that’s not too intimidating! When in doubt, keep it simple and direct. Avoid telling us why you make your work, and focus on what and how. We want to be bowled over by your work, not your words. And good luck! We hope to see you in our craft fairs!
Mackenzie Snader // Education Manager // Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsman
