Oil Painters of America’s 2024 Annual Exhibition & Convention
Oil Painters of America is pleased to announce Mark Arts located in Wichita, Kansas as the host of the Thirty-Third National Exhibition. The Exhibition will take place from April 5 – May 31, 2024 in the Gladys and Karl T. Wiedemann Gallery.
Convention activities begin on Tuesday afternoon, April 2 (for check-in and canvas stamping), with the Wet Paint Competition, and end on Sunday, April 7. The opening reception for artists, collectors, the public and the press will be held on Friday, April 5 from 6:00pm – 9:00pm with the awards ceremony taking place at 8:00pm
Our goal is to assemble the finest display of representational oil paintings. The focus in the jurying process will be to select paintings that show the highest quality in draftsmanship, color, and composition, emphasizing a diversity in representational style and subject matter.
The total national awards will be approximately $100,000 in cash and merchandise, including a $25,000 Best In Show.
The Exhibition Juror of Awards will be Sherrie McGraw OPAM. The Wet Paint Juror of Awards will be John Taft OPA.
Exhibition participation eligibility – artists who are citizens – both natural born or otherwise – of the continent of North America who are 2024 OPA members. Nonresident aliens who currently live on the continent of North America are eligible to participate provided that they have been physically present at the address provided to OPA for eight of the last twelve months and that the residency is considered to be their permanent domicile and that they are 2024 OPA members. Nonresident aliens whose North American residency is in question will be asked to provide proof of residency including, but not limited to, employment history, references, and utility bills in the individual’s name.
The decision of the Board is final.
Awards and Jurors
- Awards: The total national awards will be approximately $100,000 in cash and merchandise, including a $25,000 Best In Show.
- Jurors:
Master Signature member Sherrie McGraw.
Show Information
- Entry: EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION $450 members/$500 non-members when you register before November 15, 2023
- General Information:
Online Submissions — Deadline: Friday, January 12, 2024
Electronic applications will be accepted beginning Wednesday, November 1, 2023 and extend through Friday, January 12, 2024. Maximum canvas size may not exceed 1,200 square inches (unframed). Maximum file size is 5mb. Please upload a JPG, JPEG, PNG, HEIC with a filename that only contains alphanumeric characters. The minimum size for image uploads is 1400 pixels (px) in the longest dimension. However, for best results we recommend your image size be closer to the maximum size of 4000 pixels in the longest dimension.
Jurying Fees
The jurying fee for entries is: first painting is $35.00, the second painting is $15.00 and third painting is $10. Only one painting can be accepted. An electronic payment may be made by credit card or through Stripe. No e-checks will be accepted.
Membership
You must be a paid member through December 31, 2024, at a cost of $80.00. If you are not a member of OPA you must apply and be accepted before the system will allow you to enter the exhibition. If you are a renewing member and have not paid your dues for 2024 the system will not accept your exhibition entry.
Sales Commission
Sales commission is as follows: 40% to the museum, 10% to OPA, and 50% to the artist for all paintings sold. Please take this into consideration when setting your price. All work that is submitted must be for sale. No NFS. Paintings must be priced in accordance with the artist’s current pricing structure.
Delivery and Return of Accepted Work
Delivery for Local Artists: Deliver uncrated paintings toMark Arts from March 1 - 15, 2024. Hand delivered work must be picked up between June 4 and June 8, 2024.
Out of Town Artists: ship to Mark Arts1307 N. Rock Rd., Wichita, KS 67206 to arrive between March 1 and March 15, 2024.
Handling Fee: Out of Town Artists must pay a $25.00 fee online prior to their painting being hung. This fee covers the expense of uncrating, storage of crates, re-crating, and contacting your shipper for return. Artists may elect to include a return shipping label with their painting OR may email the label directly to Mark Arts. OPA will waive the uncrating fee for artists who use a commercially manufactured artist’s/strong box such as a StrongBox™ by Airfloat Systems, or similar brands, like Masterpak, Uline, or a FedEx Premium Art Box (not a FedEx Large Frame Box). NOTE: Home Depot boxes are NOT included in the list of boxes for which the fee will be waived. Artists who do not use one of these special boxes are required to remit the $25 prior to the hanging of the painting. Strongboxes will be returned to the artists at the conclusion of the show at the artist’s expense. PLEASE, NO WOODEN CRATES!
Shipments from OUTSIDE the US must be shipped “FREE DOMICILE” or will not be accepted. Notification posted on OPA website: Jury results posted on OPA website February 1, 2024.
- Advanced Registration: EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION $450 members/$500 non-members when you register before November 15, 2023
- Show Rules: Submission Rules Wet Paint Rules
- Liabilities and Responsibilities:
Oil Painters of America and Mark Arts will not be responsible for loss or damage of any artwork, no matter what the cause. By submitting artwork to this exhibition, each artist will be deemed to have concurred with this agreement. Artists pay for shipping both ways. We suggest that you provide insurance to cover the full value of the artwork while in transit.
Good Luck and Good Painting!
- Opa Membership: Not a member and want to enter the National Exhibition? Learn how to become a member
