Koger Center competition makes call to visual artists
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Monday, July 17, 2023
“The Project: A Call for Art,” Koger Center for the Arts’ art competition, is back for 2023.
“The Project” is the Koger Center’s annual juried art competition that supports the work of South Carolina visual artists. Each year, one chosen artist will receive a $500 stipend, gallery space and staff support resulting in a free public display in the Upstairs Gallery of the Koger Center.
Applications are open and can be found here.
Requirements:
- Artist must be over 18 years old and based in South Carolina
- Submissions must be your own work
- Submissions must have been created in the past 2 years
- Artists cannot submit any art that has previously been submitted to The Project or when it was formerly known as the Koger Center’s 1593 Project
- Previous winners/runners up of the 1593 Project or The Project may not submit artwork for up to 5 years. Honorable mentions are still eligible to submit.
Submissions will be accepted through July 17, 2023. The end of the 2023 submission period coincides with the opening of the exhibition for last year’s winners of “The Project,” including first-place winner Nick Brutto. The center promises to release further information on the exhibition at a later date.
If you have any questions about the application or any questions pertaining to the competition, please call the Koger Center at 803.777.7500 or email kogercenter@sc.edu.
History of The Project
In the year 1593, bubonic plague swept through London, killing almost a third of its population. In times of plague, London authorities closed the theatres. As acting companies fell on hard times William Shakespeare took the forced closures as a time to create, and in the year 1593 began to compose the first of what would be a brilliant collection of 154 sonnets during that dark time for the theatre.
Honoring the flame of creativity that remains bright even in times of turmoil, the Koger Center for the Arts launched the 1593 Project: A Call for Art in 2020 during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The goals were simple: offer a small financial award to a South Carolina artist and provide a platform to showcase the talent of artists in our state through an exhibition at the Koger Center.
As the pandemic began receding, we recognized the need to continue supporting South Carolina artists through this competition and accompanying exhibition. We christened the ongoing future competitions “The Project.”
