Starting October 5, EBSQ will be accepting fall submissions for EBSQ Juried Artists. Because of this, I thought that I would take a moment to explain a little about it and some of the benefits of submitting your work.

The juried division of EBSQ started in 2001. The idea behind our peer-juried group is to provide a place for artists who are of a level of skill, dedication, and talent to showcase themselves. Unlike many juried groups, the main thing that any artist is judged on is the quality of their art and its online presentation. We feel this best allows all artists - regardless of education, background, geographic location, media, or style - the chance to strive, to take their work to the next level, and to be recognized.

There are quite a few reasons for submitting work to EBSQ Juried. When you submit your work, you do not just receive a yes or no response from the jury. All artists are provided with feed back from those who have looked at their work. Some comments are on the work as a whole, some address individual pieces, some both. Not all the comments will say the same thing. Some will contradict each other but what you will have will be the thoughts and opinions of that come from different view points. An artist who may have little or no experience with submitting their work for review will get a chance to do so. Many artists have feel that the process has been valuable because it is a chance to step back and look at their entire body of work and see the development, the directions they have taken and the cohesion that may or may not run through their work. The benefits of becoming a member of EBSQ Juried Artists is access to online exhibitions through EBSQ that are juried by an outside juror. You will be listed in the juried section of the member directory and the EBSQ Juried Artist icon will be displayed when you are referenced on the EBSQ site. Should you sell your work on eBay, you may also use the designation in your auction titles for certain work.

The dates for submission are October 5th through the 20th. If you have any questions regarding how to submit, what to submit or anything else regarding the process, there are several ways to get answers and input. One thing you can do is go to the EBSQ forum and ask questions. There are plenty of people who have gone through this that will be more than happy to answer your questions and offer encouragement. You can attend the live Q&A Chat that will be held on Wednesday, October 10th at 9pm eastern time (Or find out what time this is where you are.) And of course, you may also drop us a line or visit the EBSQ forums.

If you have been considering submitting your work for EBSQ Juried, I hope that you will. If you haven't really thought about it, I hope that you will consider it. It is an excellent opportunity as well as a valuable learning experience.