2025 ARTS & CRAFTS FESTIVAL IMPORTANT ARTIST DATES

ON LINE REGISTRATION IS 12/1/24 through 3/21/25

Go HERE for the active application.

December 1, 2024: Application open & available
March 21, 2025: Application deadline
April 3, 2025: Notifications sent via email
May 12, 2025: Artist Confirmation and Booth Fee due
June 13, 2025: Booth fee refund deadline for withdrawals (5:00 PM)
August 7, 2025: Artist registration and set-up
August 8-10, 2025: 56th Annual Sun Valley Arts & Crafts Festival

Application Information

For the Sun Valley Arts & Crafts Festival, Altitude Events Group will continue to use the Zapplication System for processing all applications. To apply, please visit our dedicated page on ZAPP.

As before, artists may apply in multiple categories. Artists wishing to exhibit work produced in more than one media category must apply with a separate application, separate set of digital images and additional jury fee for each category - Apply

Application Fees, Payments & Cancellation Information

$35 per application will be deposited upon receipt
Jury fee is non-refundable
Artists should prepare digital images and apply online through Zapplication
Once invited, artists may choose to pay booth fees through ZAPP
Booth fee is due upon acceptance (April 3-May 12), and deposited upon receipt. A booth refund (less a 3% processing fee) will be given if written notification is received by June 13, 2025 at 5:00 PM Mountain.
The Sun Valley Arts & Crafts Festival will be held rain or shine.

Application Images

Six images must be submitted.
All images are juried anonymously so please be sure your name, image and studio name do not appear anywhere in the image or in the image title.
Five images should feature individual pieces that accurately represent the body of work to be exhibited; work shown in the images must be representative of current work, and no more than five years old.
One booth shot is mandatory and must be representative of presentation and work to be displayed. Booth image will be used to determine scale of work, balance and overall presentation.
Each set of six images submitted by an artist is viewed as a group. Each group of images is viewed by category in the order submitted to ZAPP.

Show Size, Booth Sizes, Fees & Other Booth Information

120 booth spaces total, each 10'x10', with some of these being doubles.
'Best Of Category' winners and the 'Best of Show' winner are granted an invitation to the 2025 festival, but must still purchase a booth.
Remaining slots will be filled through the jury process.
10'x10' regular single booth = $450
10'x10' corner booth = $500
10'x20' booth = $1000 (all double booths are on corners)
Power is not available for artist booths.
White and neutral colored tents only. Please email us for rental options.
Artists are responsible for bringing, setting up, manning and striking their tent.
Artists are not allowed to share a booth.

Goals for the Sun Valley Arts and Crafts Festival

To honor artists and their craft by providing a welcoming venue to showcase and sell their art.
Provide an opportunity for the Wood River Valley community, both locals and visitors, to learn about the national arts and crafts scene by interacting directly with artists and makers.
Exhibit great artwork with a balance of media and geographic representation.
Support both local and national artists with exposure and prospective clients.
Provide attendees with an opportunity to interact with artists directly, and to learn about/see new techniques, media, and innovative work.
Provide a robust PR and marketing plan to draw audience to the Festival.
Provide free admission and remain one of the anchor events of the summer in the Wood River Valley, while providing significant positive economic impact for the community with over 6,000 engaged attendees.

Artist Services

Scheduled and staggered set-up and tear-down times.
Vehicles are permitted on the show field for load in and break down.
Full color festival program.
Security provided from the end of the show in the evening until the following morning, and during tear down.
Free and convenient parking.
Artist Breakfast Saturday morning.
Volunteer booth sitters.
Best of Show Award receives $1,000 & Best of Category Award winners receive automatic acceptance for the 2026 Festival.
Referral services provided throughout the year.
Space and distance between booths.
Sanitizing equipment and procedures

Jury Criteria

The jury consists of a panel of 6 local professional artists and collectors. Each year, two-thirds of the panel or more rotates to ensure objectivity and a fresh festival annually. The same jurors who judge the festival applicants are also asked to judge Best of Show and Best of Category Awards during the Festival. Jurors are not compensated for their time, financially or otherwise, but charitable donations are made on their behalves.

Jury Process

Prior to scoring the artists in a category, jurors first see all the applications within that category.
Then during Round 1 of the jury, the six images of an application seen on a computer screen.
The description of materials and technique submitted in each artist’s application is reviewed during this Round, and is an important tool for sharing unique qualities of the pieces represented and creative process.
An overall score is awarded on a scale of 1-5 for quality, creativity, originality and craftsmanship.
Scores are then totaled for one cumulative score per artist, with 30 (5x6 jurors) being the highest possible score (or 31 for a local artist)
Jurors are instructed to score independently and they do not discuss their scores with other jurors during the Round 1 scoring process.
After round 1, the top scorers advance to round 2, where these applications are reviewed again via projection on a screen/wall and discussed thoroughly.
This produces a list of 120 artists who will be invited to show at the Festival. A wait list is also derived in the event some invited artists can't show.

LOCAL ARTISTS: All local artists, those living in Blaine County (as full time residents), will automatically receive one point before jurying to encourage participation and help create a positive environment for local artists.

JURY EXEMPTIONS: The Best of Show and Best of Category winners from the previous year are exempt from the jury process. The Best of Show winner is invited to participate as a jury member the following year. The Festival Director has final discretion on accepted artists.

Rules & Eligibility

Artists in all fine art and fine craft disciplines are welcome to apply.
Artists agree to be present during all show hours, all three days.
Work shown can only be made by their own hands in only the category in which they are accepted.
No political or social statements & commentary are permitted in the artwork.
If possible, artists are asked to refrain from showing pieces in your booth containing nudity, since this is family event.
Exhibited work should not be older than five years unless prior permission has been received from the Festival Director and all should be for sale.
No commercial agents, dealers or manufacturers may enter. Kits, tumbled stones, embellished objects, manufactured objects, imported objects, mass-produced goods, exhibitor posters, edible items, candles and personal care items are unacceptable for sale during the Festival.
Offset printed reproductions cannot make up more than 20% of a booth and must be labeled as such with a clear definition of the reproduction process displayed and available for the general public. Any artist displaying reproductions as their primary item for sale will be asked to remove reproductions or to leave the Festival.
All artists must disclose materials and processes used in on-site signage. A standardized format for artists’ signage can be found at www.naia-artists.org. If two or more persons collaborate to produce original work, all must be identified on the application.
No more than one assistant may be in the booth with an artist at any time.
No raffles of an artist’s work are allowed.
After the Festival, all artists are required pay both local and state sales tax on sales at the Festival. This is 100% conducted on-line with the State of Idaho, and on site on Sunday, August 10 with Ketchum. Full instructions will be provided.

Categories

Artists may choose only one category per application. Artists are welcome to apply in multiple categories, but must submit separate applications for each category. While a balanced show that showcases fine art and diversity of media is a principal objective, quotas are not established in any category. Please review category definitions carefully.

CERAMICS: Functional and/ or non-functional original works created by the artist from clay, porcelain, stoneware, and/or earthenware. If multiple pieces of the same design are displayed, each piece must be signed. No machine made or mass produced work is permitted. Painted greenware is not eligible.

DRAWING: Includes works created by the artist using dry media including chalk, charcoal, pastels, pencil, wax crayons, etc. or from fluid medium of inks and washes applied by pen or brush.

FIBER: All works crafted from fibers including leather, paper, basketry, embroidery, weaving, tapestry and papermaking. Machine tooling, machine screened patterns or miscellaneous forms of mass production are NOT permitted. No factory produced wearable items, regardless of additional modification or enhancement by the artists, will be accepted.

GLASS: Works that have been crafted via glass blowing, molding, or casting, as well as works that have been kiln-formed. Works may be etched or engraved. Glass works may be functional or purely decorative in design. No form of mass production is permitted.

JEWELRY: All jewelry, whether the work is produced from metal, glass, clay, fiber, paper, plastic or other materials. No commercial casts, molds, mass production, or production studio work allowed.

METALWORK: Functional, non-sculptural metal work. All sculptural work should be submitted within the sculpture category.

MIXED MEDIA: Includes 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional work that incorporates more than one type of material in their production.

PAINTING: Oil, acrylic, watercolor, tempera, etc.

PHOTOGRAPHY: Includes all photographic processes which begin with a camera lens. Photographers are required to disclose their creative process and printing process. All pieces must be signed, numbered and dated, in a limited edition. Prints must have been processed by the artist or under artist’s direct supervision. Prints must meet “archival quality” standards.

PRINTMAKING: Prints are defined as multiple originals where the artists hand has manipulated the plates, stone, blocks, composite reliefs, or screens and which are properly signed and numbered in limited editions. Printmakers are required to disclose their creative and printing processes.

SCULPTURE: 3-dimensional original work done in any medium.

WOOD: Original hand-tooled, machine worked, turned or carved.