You have submitted work you feel proud of, paid the fee and waited for the result. Then the email arrives: your submission has not been selected.
Rejection is disappointing, especially when you are not given a reason. It does not necessarily mean your artwork is not good enough. A publication may have limited space, a particular editorial direction or many strong submissions to choose from.
But there are things that can weaken a submission. As a publisher, these are some of the things I notice when reviewing artists for a feature.
Why a Cohesive Body of Work Matters in an Art Submission
Artists sometimes choose their favourite pieces from several different series to show their range. But when the images feel unrelated, it can be difficult to understand the depth of your practice or see how the work would come together in a feature.
Remember, the selection panel is already looking at a wide variety of artwork from many artists. What we want to see from you is a strong selection from one series or body of work that stands together.
Show a focused body of work rather than an overview of everything you have made. Selecting pieces from one series helps the jury see how you have developed an idea and allows the work to stand together
That does not mean every piece has to look identical. The work might be connected through an idea, subject, process or visual language. Choose pieces that help us understand what you are exploring.
You can also read this article about what makes a strong submission.
Why Art Magazines Look at Your Artist Website
If your submission catches our attention, your website is often where we go to see more.
We may review your website to see whether the work you submitted reflects a sustained body of work. We want to see that those few images are part of a wider practice, rather than isolated pieces.
If you submit a strong series but your website mainly shows unrelated or much older work, we may be left wondering where you are heading now. A website that looks as though it has not been updated since 2016 can also give the impression that your art business is no longer active.
Look at your website through the eyes of someone discovering you for the first time. Can they find your current work? Can they learn about you? Is it clear that you are actively making and sharing art?
As a publisher, we also think about the reader’s experience. If we feature you, your website is somewhere we send our audience to discover more. We want that visit to be rewarding.
Do You Need an Artist Website to Submit Your Work?
When a submission asks for a website and there isn’t one, it can raise questions about how developed your practice is and whether you have invested in presenting your work professionally.
That does not mean you need an expensive or complicated website. But a clear, current home for your work is a long-term investment in your art business. It gives publications, collectors and other opportunities somewhere to discover more about you beyond a social media profile.
If you are finding it difficult to meet this requirement, it may be worth considering whether you need more time to develop your online presence before applying for this particular opportunity.
How Artwork Photography Affects Your Submission
We can only assess what we can see. If your images are dark, blurry, badly cropped or full of glare, they make it harder to appreciate the work—and harder to imagine reproducing it in a publication.
You do not always need to hire a photographer, but you do need images that represent your work accurately. There are plenty of YouTube tutorials on photographing artwork; find one suited to your medium and take time to practise.
Why Your Artist Statement Matters in a Submission
A magazine feature is about more than a collection of images. We are interested in the artist, too: what you are exploring, why it matters to you and what makes your approach your own.
Your artist statement should be clear, specific and consistent with the work you submit. It should give us insight into the ideas behind the work and make us curious to learn more about you as an artist. A bio and a statement aren’t the same, and having all bio and no statement or point of enquiry in the artwork is something I have seen a few times.
A vague statement can leave us with little to connect to. Give us something specific. Tell us about the ideas, experiences or questions behind the work, in a way that sounds like you and also offers us an inroad into a conversation.
You can find training on artist statements in my Instagram highlights, with more guidance inside Standout Art Submissions.
How to Improve Your Next Art Submission
Before you apply anywhere else, look at the whole picture: the work you have selected, the quality of your images, your brand photos, the quality and clarity of your statement and the website a publisher will visit.
You may never know exactly why one submission was turned down. But taking the time to bring these elements together gives the next selection panel a clearer picture of your work - and of the artist behind it.