This post is by guest author, Sue Martin. This article has been edited and published with the author's permission. You should submit an article and share your views as a guest author by clicking here.  We've promoted this post to feature status because it provides great value to the FineArtViews community.  If you want your blog posts listed in the FineArtViews newsletter with the possibility of being republished to our 13,000+ subscribers, consider blogging with FASO Artist Websites.  This author's views are entirely her own and may not always reflect the views of BoldBrush, Inc.

I have the opportunity to enter three juried shows in the next few weeks and I'm weighing the pros and cons of doing so. To begin with, it's a lot of work. After looking through my inventory in my gallery, the walls of my house, and propped up around the floor, I'm not feeling confident about entering any of my existing paintings. That means painting, painting, painting to come up with something new.

I'm not saying creating new paintings worth entering in shows is a bad thing. It's good to have goals and deadlines. 

Also, there's the fear of rejection. What if jurors don't like my work? Every juror is different; what one doesn't like, the next may love. Though I'd like to think I've learned something from all the shows I've entered, from both the rejections and acceptances, I'm still mystified about why some paintings make the cut and some don't. But you don't get accepted if you don't enter. Over time, my ego has lost its fragility.

Then, there's the cost. Entry fees are typically $10 - $15 per painting. The cost of entering all three shows could easily mount to $100 or more. Add to that the cost of matting and framing work that is selected for exhibition. That's just the cost of doing business, I tell myself. Because exhibits are a form of marketing, I place entry fees in the "advertising" line in my business ledger. These particular show opportunities are local, so I will not have the hefty added expense of shipping if my work is selected.

So far, I've countered every con my brain has thrown in the way. But how about the "pros"? These are the benefits I've experienced in the past:

1.  Reputation - To have work selected in a highly competitive exhibition is an honor that looks great on the resume. Repeated acceptance leads, in some cases, to "signature" membership in art societies and the ability to add some initials behind your signature on your paintings.

2. Name recognition - The more you get your work before the public, and an increasingly broader public, the more you are building your "brand," which is the recognition of your name and your work. The first time I introduced myself to a stranger who said, "Oh, 'Sue Martin' the artist?" I was thrilled. She had seen my work in a statewide exhibition and remembered it.

3. Prize money - Though entering for possible prize money is as risky as playing the slots at Las Vegas, there's still a chance of winning some cash or art supplies. It's just a nice benefit if it happens.

4.  Sales - I make more sales in my gallery than I have in competitive shows, so this is not at the top of my list of benefits. Nevertheless, the potential for a sale, either at the show or later, is always part of my motivation for getting my art "out there;" out of my house, in front of art collectors, in as many different venues as possible.

So, guess how I spent my Presidents' Day weekend? That's right; painting, painting, painting, down to the wire, to get my entries ready for upcoming competitive shows.