Exhibition Application 2026 – WATER and FLOW

The Exhibition Theme: Water & Flow

  • Water is felting’s silent partner.
  • It softens the fibre, carries the colour, and coaxes separate strands into one skin.
  • In Water & Flow, we invite makers to listen to that partnership and let it speak.

Artists are encouraged to present works that reflect their unique perspective on Water & Flow through visual, conceptual, or abstract forms. This open call welcomes all artistic styles and interpretations.

Mind Mapping the Theme

Our first session of 2026 will be on Sunday, the 7th of January, where Dee Crofts will lead us in Mind Mapping around the theme of Water & Flow. HERE is a recap of our Mind Mapping session from 2024. It may help you to get your creative juices flowing! We will also have Ramona Farrelly, who will share tips on photographing your work.

Details:

Our exhibition will be displayed at the beautiful Phoenix Park Visitors Centre gallery from XX, the Xth, through Sunday, the 26th of April. The Centre is open seven days a week, 9:30 AM to 5 PM.

The exhibition will officially launch on Sunday, the 5th of April, at 3 PM, with a special guest, TBD.

Guidelines

  • There is no entry fee.
  • Only one piece will be considered.
  • Your submission may be two or three-dimensional, but should be predominantly made of felted wool – wet or needle felted or both.
  • The maximum width is 60 cm, including the FRAME, if you use one. There is no limit on height.
  • The Application Submission deadline is Friday, the 13th of March at MIDNIGHT.
  • Pieces need to be ready to hang (with hooks or wire on the back) or installed, and should be delivered to one of the four drop-off points by Tuesday, the 31st of March. {Please allow ample time if using the services of a framer.}
  • Pieces are considered sold once payment is received in full. We will have a SumUp card reader at the gallery.
  • The Guild will take 10% of the price of the work sold for handling and wrapping. This amount will ~not~ be added to the listed price,
  • For the artist to receive payment for the sold work, we need your bank details for an electronic bank transfer. Please include them on the submission form. Artwork that is not for sale need not include this information.
  • The show is non-juried, but the Committee reserves the right to refuse artworks.
  • Artwork must stay in the gallery until the end of the exhibition.

Terms and Conditions – they are boring, but please read

1) ARTWORK: The work must be original and predominantly made using feltmaking; all handmade felting techniques are accepted. Other textile techniques (as well as non-textile media) may be included, though handmade felting techniques must be the principal ones.

2) LIMITATIONS: The work must have been personally handmade after January 2025 and should not have previously been shown in any exhibition. Work done during courses or under teachers’ guidance is NOT allowed.

3) PHOTOS: Submission photos must be in JPEG FORMAT, 300 dpi, at least 2000 pixels by 2000 pixels, and photographed against a plain white background.

Image filenames should include the artist’s name and the work’s title. A hypothetical example: JANE_DOE_INSPIRED-BY-LAKES.

  • Submit ONE photo of the piece.
  • Submit ONE photo of the artist, labelled with the artist’s name.

There is an option to include another angle or a close-up photograph of the artwork. Please also label it with your name.

Images are to be submitted via the form below. (No hard copies or memory sticks).

There is an excellent blog post by Ramona Farrelly HERE about photographing work with your iPhone, editing photos with free software, and renaming your files for exhibition applications.

4) ARTWORK DELIVERY: Provide your actual piece for the exhibition on or before Tuesday, the 31st of March, 2026. There will be 4 drop-off points in the following locations: Dublin North, Dublin South, Co Kildare, and Co Galway.

If, for some reason, an artist cannot drop off by the 31st of March, with prior communication, they may bring their work to the Phoenix Park Visitor Centre Gallery on the morning of the Installation Day – XX, of March, between 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM.

You may mail your piece, but you are responsible for the return postage. Please include a self-addressed envelope with pre-paid postage. We will share the three drop-off/mailing points via email in 2026. Note: From an earlier shipping experience, we do NOT recommend using UPS.

5) DISPLAYING: Entries must be ready to hang with wire or hooks on the piece or stable enough to display on a plinth. Note: Very lightweight works can be problematic due to the gallery’s wire-hanging system.

There is a helpful blog post by Lorna Cady about framing your artwork. Find it HERE.

6) PICKUP: Artists accept responsibility for getting pieces to the organisers on time and collecting them promptly after the exhibition. Feltmakers Ireland will permit pick-up from the gallery at the show’s end on Sunday, the 26th of April, at 3:00 PM 2025. The show’s takedown will be between 3 and 4:30 PM on the 26th. Please do not ask to remove your piece before this time.

Selected artwork must stay in the gallery until the end of the exhibition. If a piece is sold to a visitor from abroad, the artist is responsible for shipping the artwork after the show ends. Otherwise, the customer will be expected to pick up their piece, unless arrangements are made for the artist to pick it up. Unsold artwork should be picked up by the artist.

IF the customer or artist is unable to pick up on the Closing Day, then arrangements need to be made with the Exhibition Sub-Committee – feltmakersIE@gmail.com

Feltmakers Ireland will arrange and provide 4 collection points for those who cannot pick up at the gallery. However, we REALLY want to avoid being responsible for long-term storage. Hence, please include a self-addressed envelope/box and protective packaging with your mailed artwork. If you do not include return postage, the Guild will need to be reimbursed.

7) HELPING: Artists living in or near Dublin are expected to help invigilate at the Phoenix Park Visitors’ Centre gallery. As the gallery is open from 9:30 AM to 5 PM, we will offer half-day shifts, in addition to full shifts.

8) PERMISSION: Feltmakers Ireland will assume we can use submitted photos to advertise the Exhibition unless you inform us in writing that you withhold your consent.

The SUBMISSION FORM

Use the scroll bar on the right side of the form to enter all your details, upload your photos, and finally click the red submission button at the bottom of the form.

THANK YOU FOR READING THROUGH THIS DOCUMENT, and also thank you for being part of the exhibition!

Again, any questions or concerns? Please email feltmakersie@gmail.com