Behind the Scenes: Who Judges an Art Festival?

Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at a fine arts show or festival? There are lots of moving pieces, and it takes time and effort from many dedicated people to successfully pull it off. One of those moving pieces centers around judging the art: Who decides which applicants are selected to participate? Who decides which pieces stand out and get the awards? The role of judges is crucial to curating the experience of any art festival.

The Importance of Judges in an Art Festival

No two art festivals are the same. Some are "invite only," and artists are pre-selected for participation, while others have an application process and ask qualified judges to determine which artists will be selected to participate. Most shows and festivals provide awards during the show for artists who's work is deemed superior - this is also determined by a qualified judge. For festivals like Art-a-Fest, judges are tasked with BOTH responsibilities: evaluating applications AND evaluating artwork during the festival. This requires the participation of many qualified judges each year.

Festivals with an application process typically enforce a deadline. Once artists have applied and the deadline has passed, a judge or panel of jurors performs a careful analysis of each entry. The evaluation process typically uses a predetermined set of criteria. This might include originality, technical skill, emotional impact, and relevance to the festival's theme. The criteria may vary based on the festival's goals and the types of art showcased. Art-a-Fest relies on a panel of 3-5 qualified members of the art community to act as jurors for this part of the process. The jury panel results determine which artists are accepted to participate in Art-a-Fest.

If an art festival awards prizes during the show (1st, 2nd, 3rd place, best in show, etc), at least one judge is tasked with the responsibility of curating artwork during the event. A predetermined set of criteria is used here as well, often the same or similar to what the jury panel used to review applications. Art-a-Fest relies on one judge to perform this process during the event, and several cash prizes are awarded - 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, 5x honorable mention awards, and 2 special awards in honor of Art-a-Fest benefactors.

Our 2024 Art-a-Fest Judge, Kent Shankle, presenting 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place artists' awards

What Makes a "Qualified" Art Festival Judge?

Art festival judges' credentials can be as varied as the artworks they evaluate. Many judges are artists themselves, often with years of experience and extensive knowledge in their profession. They may be educators, gallery owners or directors, or arts administrators- professionals who manage aspects of arts and cultural organizations. Having judges from diverse backgrounds also ensures a blend of perspectives in the evaluation process. Judging is not merely about personal taste; it involves a careful analysis based on a set of criteria. To prevent any unintentional or perceived bias, new judges and jury panel members are often sought out for recurring or annual events.

Effective judges are able to evaluate artwork based on the established criteria while remaining open to diverse artistic expressions and perspectives. Here are a few key traits that enhance their ability to evaluate art fairly and effectively:

• Objectivity and fairness, remaining impartial and avoiding personal preference or bias for individual artists or mediums.

  
  

• Strong knowledge base, understanding different artistic movements, styles, and influences.

  
  

• Understanding of various media and techniques, ensuring proper assessment of different art forms.

  
  

• Patience and focus, paying careful consideration and attention to detail.

  
  

• Good communication skills, being able to discuss the rationale behind their decisions and provide constructive feedback.

  
  

Art-a-Fest seeks a diverse group of qualified individuals to both evaluate applications and to act as judge during the event. Our 2025 jury panel was made up of qualified art professionals: art gallery directors and art administrators. Our 2025 event judge is Darrell Taylor, who is the Curator and Assistant Director at the Waterloo Center for the Arts in Waterloo, IA. Darrell is also an experienced artist with an extensive background and portfolio. This is the first year we've asked Darrell to collaborate with Art-a-Fest, and we're excited to welcome him!

The Evaluation Process

Judging art is subjective by nature, so a systematic approach is often employed to ensure fairness and consistency. Each juried arts festival has it's own criteria that judges use for their evaluation process, and it's often multi-layered.

Art-a-Fest uses the following process:

1. Preliminary Application Review: The Art-a-Fest committee pre-screens all applications to remove entries that don't meet the festival rules and requirements. This include entries with commercially manufactured items, import items, food, commercially cast jewelry, works of art from commercial molds and kits, or art cast from molds not of the artist's original design. If better images of the artwork or clarification of what the images represent are needed, the committee requests it from the artist.

   
   

2. Jury Panel Review: Judges score each application against the following criteria-

   
   

   • Creativity/Originality: Artwork should be inspired by original (one-of-a-kind) ideas, and/or executed in a style that is unique/distinguishable to the artist, not a 'cookie cutter' or pattern design.

   • Technical Skill: The artist should have a thorough understanding and mastery of the materials and medium used. Effects are deliberate/intentional, with no inconsistencies in the application

   • Presentation: Composition of the artwork should be aesthetically appealing- proportions, shades/hues, tonal values, symmetry, finishing details.

   • Overall Quality/Visual Impact: The artwork presented should be in high resolution, of good quality, and guide & capture attention.

   • Creative Expression: artwork should have significant aesthetic or intellectual expression incorporated into its creation.

     
     

   This process takes a couple of weeks to complete, depending on the number of applications. The final scores are tabulated, and artists who meet the minimum requirement are accepted to participate.

   
   

3. Judging the Event: During Art-a-Fest, the active judge visits each artist's booth for careful evaluation. The same criteria above is used for this process. A committee staff member or volunteer escorts the judge to ensure all artists are included, and it often takes several hours. When this is finished, the acting judge takes time to review and consider his/her notes before making a final decision and announcing the award winning artists.

   

   Art-a-Fest Committee member Emily Kiewel escorting our 2022 judge, David Schmitz

Final Thoughts

Often overlooked, every art festival judge plays a crucial role in the success and recognition of artists. They also provide learning opportunities for artists and attendees they interact with. Understanding the role of an art festival judge provides insight into the hard work that goes on behind the scenes. If you see Darrell Taylor at Art-a-Fest 2025, take a moment to say hello and thank him for his efforts!