Art Clubs and Online Contests ... Did You Read the Fine Print?
These days artists will see an abundance of impressive invitations on social media inviting them to submit work for online galleries, contests, art searches, and so on. I've personally observed an uptick of these invites, and it can be very confusing. I get that the algorithm plays a big part of that but I am generally pretty wary these days.
As an artist who values my earned skills and investment of time, I have concerns about handing over high resolution images of my work without reading and understanding everything I’ll be agreeing to, both now and in the future. With the surge of ai imagery, hand created art is becoming something that will be sought after. I have great respect for some of the ai work I’ve seen created – there’s no denying that it’s spectacular, imaginative and fascinating. Some I dislike, some I like very much.
What someone can (and might) do with your submitted high resolution image is something you might want to give some thought to. At the risk of sounding dramatic, the internet is an indiscriminate sponge with a powerful hunger for imagery.
Don’t be afraid to ask the communications people in your contest what happens to your artwork once the contest is over. They’ll destroy it. (how?) They keep the images for this contest only - and then what – can they be sold to a 3rd party? Copied? Altered? Used for media advertising campaigns? To what extent? For how long? With so many things to worry about, it can get a bit hairy for the average Canada goose. As artists, how can we protect ourselves?
Join the club.
If you are part of an art club, guild, group, or non-profit, you have access to a database of skills and experiences that can help you navigate areas of your practice you want to learn more about.
An art club gives artists access to a wealth of information through shared knowledge. The clubs are not generally difficult to find. If you don't have one in your area it doesn't take very much to create a group that looks out for each other's interests and promotes each other at events, fairs, etc.
Accessing art groups or guilds will do nothing but further your career and increase your knowledge for a nominal annual cost. Art clubs and groups bring opportunity and shared information and learning, encouragement, and just generally a love of art. Are there politics? Sure. There's politics in everything at one some point or another. You get what you focus on.
One of the greatest challenges of running clubs can be managing the admin – depending on the size of the club it can take some time, but shared tasks make the job easier. Having run a volunteer philanthropic project for the past 13 years, I can definitively say that admin is no plein air in the park.
Within your art group, the collective experiences and knowledge at your disposal can bring your art practice and/or art business tremendous value. But it takes boots on the ground.
If you're only a little involved in your club but could do more, I encourage you to engage. If you have an idea that can bring artists together, present it to someone. Be fearless knowing that everyone likes a good idea, even if nothing comes of it.
Art collectives are supportive, provide numerous opportunities, and can benefit artists who create for a number of reasons.
I’m a member of Arts Carleton Place. They have helped me to promote my personal gallery, and have helped me to elevate my newest collection of circular rotating artwork. They provide me with opportunities to showcase my work where it can be seen by the public and they do it well. I’m fortunate to work with dedicated professionals.
Has an art group benefitted your practice? Share the love, brag up your local art group – keep art collectives alive and thriving.
As for that contest thing? Maybe this info can help.
Here's what a rudimentary google search revealed about submitting work to random online contests without vetting...
I searched the phrase: Concerns about submitting artwork for online contests:
Intellectual Property and "Rights Grabs"
The single biggest risk in online art competitions is a predatory contract disguised as terms of service. [1]
• Copyright Forfeiture: Some predatory contests state in the fine print that by merely submitting, you transfer full ownership or copyright to the organizers, whether you win or lose. [1, 2, 3]
• Perpetual Licenses: Legitimate contests only ask for limited, non-exclusive usage rights to promote the show. Red flag phrases include "perpetual rights," "irrevocable license," or "use in any media for any purpose" without additional compensation. [1]
• Speculative Work (Spec Work): Many corporate "design contests" are simply a cheap way for companies to harvest crowdsourced marketing materials without paying professional rates to artists.
Financial Exploitation
• Exorbitant Entry Fees: While some traditional juried shows charge small administration fees, online-only contests that demand high fees are often "vanity awards" designed purely to profit off artists.
• Hidden Costs: Predatory hosts may declare you a "winner" but require you to pay for your own expensive framing, mandatory catalog inclusions, or high shipping rates to an physical exhibition space.
Security and Tech Vulnerabilities
• AI Scraping: Publicly accessible online galleries hosted by contests can leave your high-resolution submissions vulnerable to automated AI image generators scraping data without your consent.
• Data Privacy: Sketchy contest sites may be fronts to harvest your personal data, email addresses, and contact info to sell to third-party marketers.
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