The Art of the Heartland

The Art of the Heartland is a juried competition and exhibition hosted by SouthWest Artists, Inc. (SWA), a 501(c)3 nonprofit founded in 1945. The exhibition will be held at the Mena Art Gallery in Mena, Arkansas, located in the heart of the Ouachita Mountains and National Forest. The competition aims to assemble the finest display of representational paintings made in America, with the jury focusing on selecting works with the highest quality in workmanship, color, value, composition, style, and diversity of subject matter.

Eligible artists include those from all of the United States, Canada, and their possessions, provinces, and territories. Artists must be 18 years or older. Entry fee is $45 for the first entry and $20 for each additional entry. Artists may submit 1-6 images. All entries must be original work created after May 1, 2013, without instructor supervision or mechanical copy aides. Acceptable mediums include oil, water soluble oils, watercolor, casein, egg tempera, acrylic, watercolor pencil, colored pencil, and pastel. Image size must be no smaller than 7" X 10" with a maximum frame size of 36" in either direction. All work must be ready to hang with wire and must be for sale.

Awards include: 1st place/Best in Show ($4,000), 2nd place ($2,000), 3rd place ($1,000), and Award of Merit to an Arkansas Artist ($1,000). The awarding juror is Andre Pater, a world-renowned sporting artist. Submissions are electronic only through the Call for Entries (CaFÉ) System between April 1 and August 15, 2016. Digital images should be a minimum of 1920 pixels at the smallest dimension and a maximum of 5 MB. Accepted artists must pay for shipping and insurance both ways and provide prepaid return shipping labels. A 30% donation to SWA is expected for all paintings sold. Notification of acceptance will be sent electronically between August 24-26, 2016.