Pastels Only

The Pastel Society of Maine is accepting entries for its 26th Annual Open Juried Exhibition, running May 3–31, 2026. This open juried exhibition is open to all soft pastel artists, with membership in PSME not required but encouraged.

Entry fees are $40 for PSME members or $60 for non-members, with each artist able to submit up to 3 works (maximum of 1 piece per artist may be juried into the show). Awards include 1st Place: $1000, 2nd Place: $750, 3rd Place: $500, and 9 additional awards. The judge of awards is Carol Strock Wasson. Notifications of accepted and non-accepted work will be emailed by April 21, 2026.

Eligible works must be original designs completed in the past 2 years, comprised of at least 80% soft pastels (no oil pastel). All subjects and styles are acceptable except erotic or overtly political works. Works must not be copied from other artists, painted in classes or workshops under instructor supervision, or contain AI or digitally manipulated elements. There is no size limit. Paintings that have won top awards (1st, 2nd, or 3rd) in any national or international juried pastel competition, were previously shown in PSME juried competitions, or are simultaneously being shown in other national or international juried competitions are not eligible. NFS (not for sale) is allowed. Submitted images must be in focus and cropped to show only the painting with no pins, tape, mats, or background visible. The jury committee will not see artist names, ensuring an objective selection process. Entry fees are non-refundable and must be paid by the deadline. Incomplete entries will be disqualified. Award recipients will be paid by check (US artists) or PayPal transfer (non-US artists). Submitting artists must have access to a US mailing address or international PayPal account.