Rising Stars 2020: Call for Makers

2019 Winner: Mitch Pilkington, Large Point Grey Sculptural Vessel

Call for Makers: Rising Stars 2020 exhibition

Rising Stars is a curated, national platform to foster and champion students and recent graduates from BA and MA crafts, design and applied arts programmes across the UK. Rising Stars aims to offer new makers their 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 and skills exchange, a national symposium; and a catalogue to act as a promotional tool for the selected makers.

We are delighted present a professional development award of £500 and a solo exhibition at New Ashgate in 2021 for one of the makers in the exhibition.

The dates are:

Exhibition at New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham, 7 March - 18 April 2020
Professional development day, the New Ashgate Gallery (date TBC)
Professional development symposium, University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, followed by a private view at New Ashgate Gallery, 6 March 2020.

Submissions are invited from:

undergraduates
postgraduates
recent graduates who completed their study in last 36 months
makers at a pivotal moment in their early career due to changed circumstances.

Apply by email:

Application form: download it here or request a copy by email: gallery@newashgate.org.uk
3-5 images of the proposed work(s) (JPEG, 1-2MB in size, including full image captions and a title of the artwork in a file name).
CV (max. 2 pages)
Statement about your work of no more than 250 words.

The deadline is 13 January 2020, 10am. There is no fee to apply. The gallery takes a commission of 50% for the sold artwork. Email your application to New Ashgate Gallery at risingstars.exhibition@gmail.com having your name in the subject field. We regret that we are unable to accept late or incomplete applications. For informal enquiries, please contact: Gallery Director / 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 a seventeenth century listed building in Waggon Yard since the 1970s. 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 local and 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 also fosters emerging makers in partnership with the University for the Creative Arts through mentoring and touring exhibitions such as the Rising Stars competition. It also supports diverse community participation through a programme of gallery and outreach workshops.

Rising Stars 2020 is supported by Billmeir Charitable Trust. It is organised by the New Ashgate Gallery in partnership with the University for the Creative Arts.