EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A PARTICIPATING ARTIST ABOUT ART ON THE AVENUE!

DEADLINE SUMMARY:
Mailing List for Invitations: Friday, September 10, 2010
Artist Statement: Friday, October 15, 2010
Artwork Information: Friday, October 15, 2010
Artwork Delivery: Saturday, November 6, 2010 - 9:00AM to 3:00PM
Unsold Artwork Pickup: Sunday, November 14, 2010 - 11:00AM to 3:00PM

Dear Artist:

This letter is to provide you with information and timeline related to Art on the Avenue 2010, the fourteenth annual silent auction fundraiser organized by Avenue Community Development Corporation and scheduled for November 13th. Please remember that you are one of around 250 participating artists and this event is organized by an all-volunteer committee so your efforts to honor the timeline set out are both appreciated and necessary. Thank you for helping Avenue CDC support it's mission to revitalize our community by developing affordable housing and increasing economic opportunities, while preserving our area's cultural, economic, and historic diversity.

Invitations - We will be mailing 7,000 to 9,000 invitations for this event. We will gladly add names to the mailing list if you can provide us with complete name and address information from your mailing list of supporters and buyers. Emailing this information to us in Excel format is most appreciated. You may also fax the information to us at 713-864-0027. Please write legibly if you are hand writing the list. We need to have this information no later than Friday, September 3rd, preferably sooner.

We will also have a pdf format of the event invitation. This pdf file will be sent in mid October to all artists who have provided an email address to us so you can forward it on to the contacts on your email list. If we have printed invitations left after our bulk mailing you may get a small supply to mail yourself. You may pick these up at the Avenue CDC office at 2505 Washington Avenue after October 22nd. You will need to provide first class postage if you chose to mail them yourself.

Artist Statement - Our bid sheets will include room for a two or three paragraph (approximately 200 words) artist statement. Potential buyers are more likely to bid on artwork if they feel a connection with the artist. This connection may develop from your past experiences, motivation, education, or any number of other sources. Use this opportunity to introduce yourself to the art patrons attending. If we have an artist statement on file for you from prior years we will be emailing that to you in a separate email. Feel free to update it or re-write it completely. Emailing is the preferred way for us to receive this information so we may copy and paste rather than re-type but you may also fax this information to us at 713-868-9865. Please provide this information to us no later than Friday, October 15th, preferably sooner.

Artwork Information - We ask you to contribute your best new artwork, ready to hang, with a professional presentation, in any medium. Due to the every expanding participation of our art community, we have a strict one piece per artist limit this year. In order to prepare bid sheets we will need some information about the artwork you will be submitting for the auction. We will need the following: title, media, dimensions, minimum bid price. We ask you to determine the minimum opening bid for your work. Then select, in advance, the percentage of the sale you would like to donate to Avenue CDC: 50%, 75%, or 100% of the final sale price. You should use the form we provide to submit this information - either web based submission or on the paper form. This information should be submitted no later than Friday, October 16th on a form we will provide for you later.

Pricing Example - Assume you set the minimum bid price at $100 and offered to give 50% to Avenue CDC. If the artwork sold for the minimum bid of $100 you would receive $50 and Avenue CDC would receive $50. If the price were bid up to $150 you would receive $75 and Avenue CDC would receive $75.

"Buy Now" price for each artwork to encourage motivated buyers to secure their purchases on the spot! Proceeds of "Buy Now" sales will be split by the same formula described above. "Buy Now" prices are typically 50% to 100% above the minimum bid, but Avenue CDC reserves the right to establish the "Buy Now" price, taking into consideration your recommendation. You should use the form we provide to submit this information - either web based submission or on the paper form. Please provide this information to us no later than Friday, October 15th, preferably as soon as possible.

Artwork Delivery - Artwork must be delivered to Winter Street Studios on Saturday, November 6th between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM. The studios are located at 2101 Winter Street, one block east of Sawyer Drive and directly behind the Mahatma/Success Rice Mill. Winter Street runs parallel to a set of railroad tracks and is between Washington Avenue and Interstate 10. Artwork must be of professional quality and presentation and must be ready to hang. If your artwork requires a hanger other than small nails or picture hooks you will need to provide the hangers with your work. If you are unable to deliver the artwork personally during this time frame please make every effort to find someone else to deliver it for you. When you deliver, we will have a printed summary of the artwork information you provided to us in advance so you can review the information to confirm it is all correct.

Unsold Artwork Pickup - Unsold works MUST be picked up on Sunday, November 14th between 11AM and 3PM. If you are not sure whether your artwork sold or if you need to pick it up please call Mark at 713-256-7146 during this time. We need to remove artwork in order for Winter Street to begin setting up for a different event so it is VITAL that you arrange to have unsold works picked up on Sunday, November 14th. (Any work unclaimed after 30 days will become the property of Avenue CDC.)

Web Gallery - Avenue CDC is working with our webmaster to develop a web page showcasing artworks that will be hung in the show, allowing patrons an opportunity to preview some of the pieces and generate interest in the event. You may submit a digital photograph of the works you intend to submit for the auction. The photos will be watermarked prior to being posted on the internet. Photos may be in a GIF or JPEG format and each photo should be 300 pixels wide and 72dpi. The file name should include the artist name and artwork title. Please also provide the media, dimensions, and minimum bid for each piece. We plan to have this web page operational by early October. The page will be updated with more photos as they arrive. The earlier you get these photos to us the better. We reserve the right to limit the total number of artworks included in the online preview. Note that these pieces will not be available for auction on the website. Buyers must attend the event to place their bids. All photos must be digital and should be emailed to AonA2010@me.com.

Artist Attendance - All participating artists are encouraged to attend and will be admitted to the event at no charge. You will receive a name tag when you deliver your work which will act as your admission ticket. Please wear this tag to identify yourself as a participating artist. It's a great way to introduce yourself to patrons and promote your work.