JAM at last

When I joined SAQA, Studio Art Quilt Associated in 2009, I began to hear about a special level of membership, now called Juried Artist Members.

At first I thought: I’ll never be able to achieve that!

Then over time the idea began to intrigue me.

What is a Juried Artist Member?

SAQA created the designation:

“ . . . as a tool to help the collector choose new artists to purchase or to assess the importance of your collections.  SAQA offers members the opportunity to have their work juried in order to achieve Juried Artist Member status.  This status means that in the view of the jurors, the artist is producing and documenting his or her work at a high professional standard.  What could be more useful to the collector, than the assurance that an artist has created and will continue to create top-quality work and is recognized, by his or her peers, as a professional?  SAQA offers collectors an enormous advantage because we have access to the online directory of Juried Artist Members.”

In fact the jurying process was indeed very rigorous. The first time I applied, I was not accepted.

But I applied a second time, and was just notified that I was accepted!

Notice the stipulation that the work is being documented at a high professional standard.

Writing artist statements, and keep accurate records is part of being a professional artist. I have heard that it is now being taught as such in art schools.  True?

Anyway, here is my new JAM profile.

http://www.saqa.com/gallery-detail.php?ID=5602