Gainesville Downtown Festival & Arts Show’s Emerging Artist Program aims to create a pipeline for new talent to access and participate in the juried art show portion of the Downtown Festival & Art Show, Gainesville’s largest street festival and north central Florida’s largest celebration of fine art. Artists who have never shown their work at the Downtown Festival & Art Show before may apply to participate.

Categories/Mediums 
• Ceramics
• Digital Art
• Drawing, Painting, and Printmaking
• Fiber
• Glass
• Jewelry
• Metal
• Mixed Media 2D and 3D
• Photography
• Sculpture
• Wood

Selected 2022 Emerging Artists will receive:
• Booth and application fee waiver ($311 value)
• Participation stipend ($200 cash)
• A borrowed 10×10 tent to display and sell their work during the festival ($200+ value)
• The opportunity to show and sell their work, to experience the judging process, and to compete for a cash Emerging Artist Award ($500 value)
• An automatic invitation to participate in the 2023 Festival.
• Mentorship opportunities that include introductions to local curators and a meeting with a highly successful festival artist to discuss pricing, booth design, and other topics relevant to art fair success.

Application Process
Artists must apply through Monochronicle to participate. Each artist must submit four images: 3 images of three original pieces of their art and one image of their art grouped together (either a booth shot or just a grouping of their work displayed together). Selection for this program prioritizes diversity and fresh perspectives, creating an intentional space to welcome and celebrate BIPOC artists, immigrant artists, and other underrepresented voices. Is there something about your background or identity that you would like us to consider when judging applications? Please, send us a message along with images using the form below. Deadline: September 30th, 2022.

Funding
The Emerging Artist Program would not be possible without the generous support of our community sponsors: Gainesville Fine Arts Association (GFAA) & Gallery, Sequential Artist Workshop (SAW), a private donor, and the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts.