2026-27 CWS Member's Exhibition

Overview

The Colorado Watercolor Society Member's Exhibition is open to all CWS members with currently paid dues. This non-juried entry show will be judged for awards. Each member may submit one painting.

Key dates

• Submission deadline: Tuesday, September 1, 2026, 11:59pm MST
• Art delivered by hand: Thursday, October 1, 2026, 10am–noon to Adams County Government Center/Taza Coffee Shop
• Exhibition opens to the public: Friday, October 2, 2026
• Award ceremony: Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 6–8pm at the Lakewood Cultural Center
• Exhibition closes: Friday, January 8, 2027
• Pick up unsold art: Saturday, January 9, 2027, 10am–noon

Media and substrate

Media must be predominantly watermedia (watercolor, acrylic, gouache, casein, water-based ink, and tempera). Paintings must be on paper, synthetic paper, yupo, canvas, watercolor paper attached to an aluminum or wood panel, or on watermedia boards such as aquaboard.

Artwork requirements

• Artwork must be original and completed within the last two years (January 1, 2024 to present)
• No copies, likenesses of other artists' work, published sources, internet images, or AI-generated work permitted
• Reference photographs must be taken by the artist; no use of other people's photos
• No work done in a class or workshop permitted; the artist must be the sole creator
• Any collage material must be produced by the artist using watermedia
• Artwork may not have been previously shown in a juried or non-juried CWS or Colorado watercolor society exhibition
• Artwork must be on display for the entire exhibition duration
• The artist's signature must appear on the front of the painting

Presentation and framing

• Maximum art size (not including frame): 22" × 30"; minimum image size: 80 square inches
• Frame moulding: no wider than 5 inches per side
• All frames must have hardware with picture wire (no sawtooth hangers)
• All artwork must be either under plexiglass of appropriate thickness or sealed with acrylic-based varnish or waterproof wax (no glass or mylar)
• If not sealed with varnish or wax, artwork must be matted with white mat (minimum 3" width on narrowest side); colored liners/fillets permitted but not larger than 1/4"
• Varnished or sealed work may not be matted and must be framed similar to oil paintings
• Artwork with chipped, cracked, damaged, dirty, or improper presentation will not be hung

Submission format

Submit JPEG files only at 300 dpi, under 4MB in size, with minimum dimension of 540px and maximum dimension of 1920px on the longest side.

Fees and sales

• Entry fee: $25
• All entries must be for sale; no price changes accepted after submission deadline
• CWS retains 15% commission; artists receive 85% of sale price
• $50 handling fee for shipped work
• Commission checks mailed within 45 days of exhibition close

Membership

Membership can be renewed at https://www.coloradowatercolorsociety.org.

Rules

CWS reserves the right to refuse any painting that does not comply with requirements or does not match the submitted image. All information provided is final and may not be changed after the submission deadline. Failure to comply or meet requirements may result in disqualification, ineligibility to enter future CWS exhibits for a minimum of two years, and forfeiture of any award. If accepted work is not delivered, the artist will be ineligible to enter future CWS exhibits for a minimum of two years.