Nonrefundable entry fee of $20 (USD) per quilt entered.
Timeline
January 20 Call opens
May 4 Call closes
May 25 All entrants notified
June 16 All accepted quilts due
You will be asked if your quilt can travel. The decision to travel the exhibit will be made in November 2023.
Size of Entries: Minimum width is 36”. Maximum width is 94". Minimum length is 36" and maximum length is 94”.The quilt must consist of three layers held together by stitching. Embellishments cannot protrude more than 1/2". Each entry must have a 4” (10 cm) finished sleeve or casing sewn to the top back edge of the quilt (please include a .125”/.377 cm ease in the sleeve or casing). Sleeves should be secured with stitching at the top and bottom edge.
A cloth label with the entrant’s name, address, telephone number, and email must be securely sewn to the back of the quilt, bottom left side. The quilts should be made between January 2020 and May 2023. Please do not submit quilts made from kits. A kit is defined as a unit for retail sale composed of patterns, fabrics, and quilting designs.
Glitter: Due to transfer issues with glitter on quilts, glitter fabric, or any type of attached glitter on quilts will cause the quilt to be disqualified.
Who May Enter: The entries may be the work of one person or more than one person as long as proper credit is given to all involved in the actual completion of the quilt. The person entering the quilt must have been directly involved in the quilt’s creation.
In this call the top may be pieced by one person and the quilting may be done by another. The quilting may be paid for, but the quilter must be acknowledged on the submission form under Additional Quilters.
Number of Entries: You may enter up to two (2) quilts per person or group.
Entry fee: A nonrefundable entry fee of $20 (USD) will be paid per quilt entered.
Photo/Image Copyright Permission: Entry into the exhibition automatically grants copyright permission for the image of the quilt and/or all or part of the Artist’s Statement about the quilt to be used in articles, ads, promotions, catalogs, books, magazines, websites (including any webcast coverage), blogs, CDs, DVDs, current event news coverage, television productions, online and/or multimedia productions for and about the International Quilt Festival, International Quilt Market, Virtual Quilt Festival, or for and about this exhibit; or for and about quilting and developing creativity. The quilt artist retains copyright to the quilt and will be credited in any usage.
Completed submissions with visuals must be received online by midnight CDT, May 4, 2023. You will be notified no later than May 25, 2023, regarding the quilts to be included in this exhibit along with shipping instructions. If selected, the quilts will need to arrive in Houston no later than June 16,2023.
Jury: A qualified jury will select the works. The jury’s decision is final. Entries selected from digital images are subject to additional evaluation when the actual quilt arrives in Houston. If the actual quilt is found to differ significantly from the digital image submitted for jurying, the selection committee reserves the right to reject the entry and override the jurors’ initial decision. The decision as to whether the difference is significant is entirely the prerogative of the committee.
Condition of quilt:
Due to transfer issues with glitter on quilts, glitter fabric or any type of attached glitter on quilts will be disqualified.
The majority of the quilt must consist of three (3) distinct layers—top, middle layer, and backing. Quilts must be quilted by hand and/or machine with three exceptions—Crazy quilts, which can be tied or quilted, Cathedral Windows-style quilts, and Yo-Yo quilts.
All quilts must arrive clean, undamaged, and free of strong odors in order to be shown.
Your quilt must be able to be stacked with other quilts and boxed and/or rolled with other quilts without potential damage to your quilt or any other quilt in the show. This determination is at the sole discretion of Special Exhibits and can result in disqualification from exhibition. If this is the case, entrant will be notified.
Odd-shaped quilts and quilts with multiple panels must be mounted on black fabric containing a sleeve. The top half of these quilts must be sewn securely to the black fabric. The bottom half should be loose. The black fabric must not extend past the outermost edges of your quilt. Quilts with multiple panels hanging side-by-side horizontally may be mounted to a single black sleeve, but the quilt measurements should be taken after the sleeve is added.
Copyright: It is the entrant’s responsibility to obtain all necessary copyright releases for work that is covered under the copyright laws of the United States. This may include work derived from or copied from the photo or art of another, quilts made from patterns, etc. You must also give proper credit for the design on the entry form. Entrant will provide Special Exhibits with a copy of the copyright release upon request.
Length of exhibit: Quilts will be returned by the end of January 2024 if quilt does not travel to other venues. If you need it sooner than January 2024, please email special exhibits. If you agree to allow your quilt to travel, your quilt will be returned by the end of January 2025. The decision to travel an exhibit will be made in November 2023. You will be notified at that time.
Selling Your Quilt: You may choose to offer your quilt for sale while on exhibition. If you do, 25% of the selling price will be donated to the Texas Quilt Museum. The Museum is 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Please check with your tax advisor for information on how to deduct the donation.
Visual Instructions: Please read carefully the information for your digital images. The complete instructions may be downloaded here. https://www.quilts.com/photographing-your-quilt/
Each entry requires you to upload one full view of the quilt and one detail view.
The full view image should show all edges of the finished quilt. The edges on all sides must be clearly seen in the photograph.
Please remove any previous show labels or ribbons that may be attached to the front of the quilt before taking a photograph.
Please take a new photograph for the detail image. Focus on a portion of the quilt that relates to the category theme and/or an important part of the quilt, as well as some of the quilting stitches.
A neutral background is preferred.
As our policy is to blind jury, you may not identify your photographs with a watermark or put your name on the photograph itself.
Please crop the photo(s) so that there is minimal background. Please leave a clear edge around the total overall image.
If you open your photos in image-editing software to crop the background, you will be asked how to save the photo when you are done. Save as a JPEG, RGB color (the default setting in most image-editing programs), standard or baseline setting, and set the quality to maximum. No CMYK images or progressive setting JPEGs will be accepted.
The finished image should not be less than 1500 pixels and not be more than 2400 pixels. If it is not the correct size, do not increase it within the software program. Instead, take another picture that has a higher resolution.
Image size should not exceed 3MB.
There is no requirement to label the image file names. The system will automatically rename them after they are uploaded.
Timeline for Quilt Registration:
Announcement and preview: July 19, 2022 - January 20, 2023
Registration open: January 20, 2023
Notification by: May 25, 2023
Deadline for Receiving Quilts: Selected quilts arrive in Houston by June 16, 2023. The selected works should be sent by the participant, at his/her own expense, to arrive no later than June 16, 2023 at the offices of Quilts, Inc. in Houston, Texas, USA.
Shipping Information: Complete shipping information will be sent when your entry is juried into the exhibition. DO NOT SEND QUILTS PRIOR TO NOTIFICATION.
Quilts returned to owner: By the end of January 2024 (unless traveling), however most non-traveling quilts wil be returned by the end of December 2023.
SENDING QUILTS FOR EXHIBITION
Deadline for Receiving Quilts: Selected quilts are to arrive in Houston by June 16, 2023. The selected works should be sent by the participant, at his/her own expense, to arrive no later than June 16, 2023 at the offices of Quilts, Inc. in Houston, Texas, USA.
Shipping Information:
Complete shipping information will be sent when your entry is juried into the exhibition. DO NOT SEND QUILTS PRIOR TO NOTIFICATION.
Shipping boxes are not kept unless requested. Since there is very limited space a $20.00 (USD) fee will be assessed for boxes/tubes that are to be kept. The fee is due before the show date.
Shipping to and from the show will be paid for by the artist.Payment and shipping arrangements for return shipping will be addressed in the acceptance letter.
All quilts must arrive clean, undamaged, and free of strong odors in order to be shown.
Special Exhibits reserves the right to omit an entry from judging or display if the quality or condition does not meet standards upon hands-on inspection or if the quilt has glitter.
Important Special Note to Quilters Shipping from Foreign Countries: While we encourage you to insure your work for its full value for insurance purposes, we must ask you to value it for customs declaration purposes only at no more than $10 (USD). A higher customs value may require an expensive bond that may not be refunded upon your quilt’s return to its home country. Also mark the customs document with “for exhibition and return, not for sale, no commercial value.” We hope you understand that this is for practical purposes only, and certainly does not reflect on Quilt Festival’s estimation of your work. If you wish to claim full value for customs purposes, we recommend that you arrange a carnet A.T.A. for your quilt at your expense. If we incur customs expenses due to a decision on your part to declare the customs value of your quilt as more than $10, you will need to reimburse us for any such expense. If you claim less than $10 for customs purposes, and we still incur customs charges, we will pay those charges in full and will not expect reimbursement.
RETURN SHIPPING: Payment of the return shipping fees are the responsibility of the quilter. Payment and shipping arrangements for return shipping will be explained in the acceptance letter. The link to complete the return shipping will be emailed in October. The artist will be asked to verify the shipping address and phone number and their availability to receive the quilt. Payment will be made prior to shipping.
Return shipping labels from UPS, Federal Express or other shipping companies will not be accpeted.
There is limited availability for show pickup.
LIABILITY/INSURANCE INFORMATION
Accepted quilts should be insured through the owner’s individual insurance company. Quilts, Inc. will insure each quilt from the time we receive the quilt until it is shipped back.
Quilts, Inc. shall not be held liable for any damages or loss beyond the insurance limitations specified in the rules. Furthermore, that such insurance shall be the sole remedy of Artist.
Quilts, Inc. will insure each quilt as follows: large quilts for $500, small quilts for $300, and miniature quilts for $125.
Large quilt: one length + one width of the quilt must be greater than 120 inches (305 cm), but not greater than 200 inches (508 cm). The total width must not exceed 100 inches (254 cm).
Small quilt: one length + one width of the quilt must be 120 inches (305 cm) or smaller, unless it is a miniature quilt.
Miniature quilt: measures less than or equal to 24 inches (61 cm) on each side.
Example: side A (length) = 60 inches (152 cm); Side B (width) = 40 inches (101 cm); A + B = 100 inches (254 cm). It is a small quilt.
Publicity: All publicity must be arranged through our Publications and Public Information Department.
©Quilts, Inc. 2023