Beginning today, artists can sign up for the next six weeks to be part of ArtPrize.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – ArtPrize artist registration for 2013 opens today, the second round of preparations for the fifth annual contest.

ArtPrize 2013 has 186 possible places to show art and 560,000 reasons why you want to be a part of the exhibition created by social media pioneer Rick DeVos.

Namely, $560,000 in prize money.

Six weeks of artist registration opens at 12 noon today.

But before artist registration ends June 6, 2013, Connections period to match people with places begins Monday, April 29, the third round in the run-up to the ArtPrize 2013, which returns Sept. 18-Oct. 6 this fall.

Venue registration for ArtPrize 2013 ended April 12 with 154 offices, restaurants, banks and public parks, all within a 3-square mile area of downtown Grand Rapids plus Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.

But over the past 10 days, another 32 venues – most of them new to ArtPrize – have appeared on ArtPrize’s website, following completion of site inspections.

The days ahead will determine whether all 186 venues are part of the exhibition that Time magazine said earlier this year is a don’t-miss event.

Related: Time magazine names ArtPrize one of “Five Festival Events You Won’t Want to Miss in 2013.”

ArtPrize 2012 featured 161 places showing 1,517 works of art by individual artists or teams from 46 countries and 41 U.S. states, a slightly smaller exhibition than ArtPrize 2011, which saw 164 places with 1,582 entries.

Time will tell whether ArtPrize 2013 contracts further or whether it tops last year’s size.

In all, $560,000 in cash prizes will be awarded in October.

A total of $360,000 will be awarded by popular vote to the Top 10 favorites of registered voters, casting ballots to pick the winner of the top $200,000 first prize, $75,000 second prize, and $50,000 third prize. Identical cash prizes for fourth through 10th place will be $5,000.

Related: ArtPrize 2012 winner of $200,000 is ‘Elephants’ by Adonna Khare

Another $200,000 will be awarded in ArtPrize Juried Awards including the top $100,000 Juried Grand Prize, sponsored by Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University, chosen by a panel of three jurors yet to be announced.

Related: ArtPrize 2012 $100,000 Juried Grand Prize winner awarded a major grant from Creative Capital

An additional five juried prizes, each worth $20,000, will be awarded in specific genres by jurors specializing in those fields.

Check out ArtPrize’s website for more information.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

Founders Brewing Co. has made a five-year, six-figure commitment to ArtPrize.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Founders is now the official beer of ArtPrize.

Grand Rapids’ own Founders Brewing Co. has become an ArtPrize premier sponsor, a deal worth more than $500,000 over the next five years.

When the $560,000 competition and exhibition returns to Grand Rapids in September, Founders beer will be served at all official ArtPrize events.

But Founders, now in the middle of a $26 million expansion of its taproom and cellars at 235 Grandville Ave. SW, has been an ArtPrize venue since the debut of the radically open, international art competition in 2009.

Building closer relations between one successful Grand Rapids original and another seemed natural, said Mike Stevens, co-founder and CEO of Founders Brewing Co., ranked at No. 30 on the Brewers Association list of largest American craft breweries by sales volume in 2012.

Related: As American craft beer exports climb, Founders aiming to be ‘pioneer on an international level’

“ArtPrize has been something we’ve been involved in since the beginning, and we’ve always kicked around furthering our involvement,” Stevens said. “We chose to increase our commitment this year and can’t wait to pair our world-class beer with the most engaging art event in the world.”

Founders, which has made a distinctive mark on the craft beer community by brewing complex ales, joins Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University as an ArtPrize premiere leadership sponsor, calling for a commitment of at least $100,000 per year.

ArtPrize announced last year announced Kendall would support ArtPrize’s $100,000 Juried Grand Prize and commit to remaining an ArtPrize Exhibition Center for the next five years.

Related: Kendall College set to sponsor ArtPrize’s Juried Grand Prize for next five years

The organization founded by social media entrepreneur Rick DeVos always is open to new, strategic ways to partner with leading and emerging national brands, said Daryn Kuipers, interim executive director of ArtPrize.

“We’re both growing a national and international brand, and we’re working together to co-brand both,” Kuipers said. “Both Founders and ArtPrize are two organizations that are defining Grand Rapids’ reemergence,” Kuipers said. “Both organizations have heritage, values and roots in this community and will make an excellent partnership.”

Related: Time magazine names ArtPrize one of “Five Festival Events You Won’t Want to Miss in 2013.”

ArtPrize 2013 will take place Sept. 18 – Oct. 6, 2013.

Venue registration ended last week with 154 venues ready to be part of the fifth edition of the popular art competition. More have been added to the event as final site approvals continued this week.

Artist Registration for ArtPrize 2013 opens on Monday, April 22.

Founders has received numerous awards from the World Beer Cup and the Great American Beer Festival, and its beers are often rated among the best in the world by RateBeer and BeerAdvocate users.

Elements of the partnership include offering Founders beer at all official ArtPrize events, signage, promotion, merchandise, specialized glassware and other specialized items during the 19-day event this fall.

The brewery additionally will be recognized as a major sponsor at all ArtPrize events, and will be featured on the ArtPrize promotional poster.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

A few more offices, restaurants and churches may yet be a part of ArtPrize 2013. Here’s why it isn’t over yet.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – ArtPrize 2013 has at least 154 venues ready and willing to part of the fifth annual exhibition and competition returning to Grand Rapids this fall.

Likely more are on the way.

ArtPrize 2013 venue registration closed at 5 p.m. with 154 confirmed offices, banks, bars and churches on board to be a part off the $560,000 contest coming in September.

But more are yet to come, pending approval, according to Brian Burch, ArtPrize director of public relations.

“Many of these are new venues and require a site visit before they can be confirmed,” Burch said. “Visitors to the website will see the venue number increase as pending venues are approved.”

“We will not have a final count until at least the end of next week,” Burch said.

Participating venues have to be within ArtPrize’s official boundaries, meet safety expectations and be prepared to be open during ArtPrize 2013’s official hours.

ArtPrize 2012 saw a total of 195 venues signed up to be part of the exhibition and competition created by social media entrepreneur Rick DeVos. But all venue approvals were contingent on each location matching with at least one artist for the 19-day exhibition.

Last year, by the end of the Connection period to match artists with venues, just 161 spots would go on to be a part of ArtPrize 2012.

The pace of ArtPrize 2013 venue registration, a one-month process from March 11 to April 11, matched last year’s signup process for more than three weeks, even logging its 100th venue four days before the close of registration.

The final count, however, is expected to fall short of last year’s total.

Five Exhibition Centers – Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids Art Musuem, Kendall College of Art and Design, Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts and Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park – all have returned from past years to be part of ArtPrize 2013 opening Sept. 18.

Related: ArtPrize 2012: All about Exhibition Centers and Showcase Venues

Four Showcase Venues – Cathedral Square, Grand Rapids Public Museum, St. Cecilia Music Center and Women’s City Club – also have returned to ArtPrize, which runs for 19 days through Oct. 6.

ArtPrize 2013 now takes a 10-day break to catch its breath in the run up to this year’s radical urban exhibition.

ArtPrize 2013 artist registration opens on April 22 and lasts until June 6 for artists who hope to compete for the $200,000 ArtPrize First Prize, chosen by viewers through a popular vote; and for the $100,000 ArtPrize Juried Grand Prize, selected by a panel of jurors.

One week after the start of Artist Registration, the Connections period opens April 29 to match artists and venues in the event created by entrepreneur Rick DeVos.

Artist Registration continues through May 24. Connections ends two weeks later on June 14.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

A few more offices, restaurants and churches may yet be a part of ArtPrize 2013. Here’s why it isn’t over yet.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – ArtPrize 2013 has at least 154 venues ready and willing to part of the fifth annual exhibition and competition returning to Grand Rapids this fall.

Likely more are on the way.

ArtPrize 2013 venue registration closed at 5 p.m. with 154 confirmed offices, banks, bars and churches on board to be a part off the $560,000 contest coming in September.

But more are yet to come, pending approval, according to Brian Burch, ArtPrize director of public relations.

“Many of these are new venues and require a site visit before they can be confirmed,” Burch said. “Visitors to the website will see the venue number increase as pending venues are approved.”

“We will not have a final count until at least the end of next week,” Burch said.

Participating venues have to be within ArtPrize’s official boundaries, meet safety expectations and be prepared to be open during ArtPrize 2013’s official hours.

ArtPrize 2012 saw a total of 195 venues signed up to be part of the exhibition and competition created by social media entrepreneur Rick DeVos. But all venue approvals were contingent on each location matching with at least one artist for the 19-day exhibition.

Last year, by the end of the Connection period to match artists with venues, just 161 spots would go on to be a part of ArtPrize 2012.

The pace of ArtPrize 2013 venue registration, a one-month process from March 11 to April 11, matched last year’s signup process for more than three weeks, even logging its 100th venue four days before the close of registration.

The final count, however, is expected to fall short of last year’s total.

Five Exhibition Centers – Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids Art Musuem, Kendall College of Art and Design, Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts and Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park – all have returned from past years to be part of ArtPrize 2013 opening Sept. 18.

Related: ArtPrize 2012: All about Exhibition Centers and Showcase Venues

Four Showcase Venues – Cathedral Square, Grand Rapids Public Museum, St. Cecilia Music Center and Women’s City Club – also have returned to ArtPrize, which runs for 19 days through Oct. 6.

ArtPrize 2013 now takes a 10-day break to catch its breath in the run up to this year’s radical urban exhibition.

ArtPrize 2013 artist registration opens on April 22 and lasts until June 6 for artists who hope to compete for the $200,000 ArtPrize First Prize, chosen by viewers through a popular vote; and for the $100,000 ArtPrize Juried Grand Prize, selected by a panel of jurors.

One week after the start of Artist Registration, the Connections period opens April 29 to match artists and venues in the event created by entrepreneur Rick DeVos.

Artist Registration continues through May 24. Connections ends two weeks later on June 14.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

A few more offices, restaurants and churches may yet be a part of ArtPrize 2013. Here’s why it isn’t over yet.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – ArtPrize 2013 has at least 154 venues ready and willing to part of the fifth annual exhibition and competition returning to Grand Rapids this fall.

Likely more are on the way.

ArtPrize 2013 venue registration closed at 5 p.m. with 154 confirmed offices, banks, bars and churches on board to be a part off the $560,000 contest coming in September.

But more are yet to come, pending approval, according to Brian Burch, ArtPrize director of public relations.

“Many of these are new venues and require a site visit before they can be confirmed,” Burch said. “Visitors to the website will see the venue number increase as pending venues are approved.”

“We will not have a final count until at least the end of next week,” Burch said.

Participating venues have to be within ArtPrize’s official boundaries, meet safety expectations and be prepared to be open during ArtPrize 2013’s official hours.

ArtPrize 2012 saw a total of 195 venues signed up to be part of the exhibition and competition created by social media entrepreneur Rick DeVos. But all venue approvals were contingent on each location matching with at least one artist for the 19-day exhibition.

Last year, by the end of the Connection period to match artists with venues, just 161 spots would go on to be a part of ArtPrize 2012.

The pace of ArtPrize 2013 venue registration, a one-month process from March 11 to April 11, matched last year’s signup process for more than three weeks, even logging its 100th venue four days before the close of registration.

The final count, however, is expected to fall short of last year’s total.

Five Exhibition Centers – Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids Art Musuem, Kendall College of Art and Design, Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts and Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park – all have returned from past years to be part of ArtPrize 2013 opening Sept. 18.

Related: ArtPrize 2012: All about Exhibition Centers and Showcase Venues

Four Showcase Venues – Cathedral Square, Grand Rapids Public Museum, St. Cecilia Music Center and Women’s City Club – also have returned to ArtPrize, which runs for 19 days through Oct. 6.

ArtPrize 2013 now takes a 10-day break to catch its breath in the run up to this year’s radical urban exhibition.

ArtPrize 2013 artist registration opens on April 22 and lasts until June 6 for artists who hope to compete for the $200,000 ArtPrize First Prize, chosen by viewers through a popular vote; and for the $100,000 ArtPrize Juried Grand Prize, selected by a panel of jurors.

One week after the start of Artist Registration, the Connections period opens April 29 to match artists and venues in the event created by entrepreneur Rick DeVos.

Artist Registration continues through May 24. Connections ends two weeks later on June 14.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

A few more offices, restaurants and churches may yet be a part of ArtPrize 2013. Here’s why it isn’t over yet.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – ArtPrize 2013 has at least 154 venues ready and willing to part of the fifth annual exhibition and competition returning to Grand Rapids this fall.

Likely more are on the way.

ArtPrize 2013 venue registration closed at 5 p.m. with 154 confirmed offices, banks, bars and churches on board to be a part off the $560,000 contest coming in September.

But more are yet to come, pending approval, according to Brian Burch, ArtPrize director of public relations.

“Many of these are new venues and require a site visit before they can be confirmed,” Burch said. “Visitors to the website will see the venue number increase as pending venues are approved.”

“We will not have a final count until at least the end of next week,” Burch said.

Participating venues have to be within ArtPrize’s official boundaries, meet safety expectations and be prepared to be open during ArtPrize 2013’s official hours.

ArtPrize 2012 saw a total of 195 venues signed up to be part of the exhibition and competition created by social media entrepreneur Rick DeVos. But all venue approvals were contingent on each location matching with at least one artist for the 19-day exhibition.

Last year, by the end of the Connection period to match artists with venues, just 161 spots would go on to be a part of ArtPrize 2012.

The pace of ArtPrize 2013 venue registration, a one-month process from March 11 to April 11, matched last year’s signup process for more than three weeks, even logging its 100th venue four days before the close of registration.

The final count, however, is expected to fall short of last year’s total.

Five Exhibition Centers – Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids Art Musuem, Kendall College of Art and Design, Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts and Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park – all have returned from past years to be part of ArtPrize 2013 opening Sept. 18.

Related: ArtPrize 2012: All about Exhibition Centers and Showcase Venues

Four Showcase Venues – Cathedral Square, Grand Rapids Public Museum, St. Cecilia Music Center and Women’s City Club – also have returned to ArtPrize, which runs for 19 days through Oct. 6.

ArtPrize 2013 now takes a 10-day break to catch its breath in the run up to this year’s radical urban exhibition.

ArtPrize 2013 artist registration opens on April 22 and lasts until June 6 for artists who hope to compete for the $200,000 ArtPrize First Prize, chosen by viewers through a popular vote; and for the $100,000 ArtPrize Juried Grand Prize, selected by a panel of jurors.

One week after the start of Artist Registration, the Connections period opens April 29 to match artists and venues in the event created by entrepreneur Rick DeVos.

Artist Registration continues through May 24. Connections ends two weeks later on June 14.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

Venue registration to be a part of ArtPrize 2013 ends at 5 p.m. today.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – ArtPrize 2013, in the final hours of venue registrations, is shaping to have fewer venues than past exhibition.

At noon today, with five hours remaining in venue signup to be part of the fifth annual competition, just over 140 venues were on board.

Venue registration ends at 5 p.m. today.

The pace of ArtPrize 2013 venue registration, a one-month process from March 11 to April 11, last week was matching the previous year’s signup process.

Venue signups picked up this week. ArtPrize registered its 100th venue on Monday and reached 142 at noon today for the $560,000 competition returning in this fall.

Last year, nearly half of all of the signups appeared on ArtPrize’s website in the final four days of the month-long venue registration to reach 195.

By the end of the Connection period to match artists with venues, just 161 remained for ArtPrize 2012.

Five Exhibition Centers – Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids Art Musuem, Kendall College of Art and Design, Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts and Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park – all have returned from past years to be part of ArtPrize 2013 opening Sept. 18.

Related: ArtPrize 2012: All about Exhibition Centers and Showcase Venues

Four Showcase Venues – Cathedral Square, Grand Rapids Public Museum, St. Cecilia Music Center and Women’s City Club – also have returned to ArtPrize, which runs for 19 days through Oct. 6.

In fact, most of the ArtPrize 2013 venues signed up so far participated in last year’s urban exhibition.

Venues can learn more or begin registering on ArtPrize’s website.

ArtPrize 2013 artist registration opens on April 22 and lasts until June 6 for artists who hope to compete for the $200,000 ArtPrize First Prize, chosen by viewers through a popular vote; and for the $100,000 ArtPrize Juried Grand Prize, selected by a panel of jurors.

One week after the start of Artist Registration, the Connections period opens April 29 to match artists and venues in the event created by entrepreneur Rick DeVos.
Artist Registration continues through May 24. Connections ends two weeks later on June 14.

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter

Jurors will award three $500 prizes for work to be entered in ArtPrize 2013.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Artwork by artists with disabilities, some of it headed to ArtPrize 2013, is on display for a limited time in Grand Rapids.

“ACTion Art Gallery and Exhibition” organized by Artists Creating Together, opened Monday in Grand Rapids with work by 32 artists from across West Michigan.

The exhibition at 1140 Monroe Ave. NW Suite 2101 is next door to Artists Creating Together, a nonprofit organization that brings children, youth and adults with disabilities together with artists, the arts and art projects.

“It really was an idea and a way to showcase these artist’s wonderful talents,” said Michele Suchovsky, executive director of ACT, which formerly was known as VSA art Michigan-Grand Rapids.

Two dimensional and three dimensional work in watercolors, acrylics and pastels plus pottery, woodworking, recycled metal and mixed media are in the show, created by artists from Grand Rapids, Ionia, Big Rapids and other cities.

Artists participating in the ACTion Art Gallery and Exhibition and submitted up to three pieces of artwork.

The exhibition offers the artists a chance to see their work in a professional setting, and market their pieces to the community at large, a learning experience for any artist wanting to take the next step and profit from their endeavors.

“You can produce work, but how do you sell it?” Suchovsky said. “How do you talk to a gallery, how do you show your work or price it?”

Some 85 to 90 percent of the work is for sale beginning at $20.

“A couple already sold on the first day,” Suchovsky said.

One People’s Choice Award worth $100 will be awarded at the end of the exhibition, to be chosen by people visiting the show.

A panel of jurors including Kathryn Chaplow, board president of Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, and Chris Stoffel Overvoorde, an artist and retired professor at Calvin College, will select three pieces for ACT to enter in ArtPrize 2013. Each of the three also will receive a $500 ArtPrize Sponsorship Award.

ACT already has lined up space in the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel for ArtPrize 2013, which will be held Sept. 18 through Oct. 6.

Last year, ACT collaborated with Legacy Trust in the Third Annual Legacy Trust Award Collection contest for adult artists with disabilities. But the two are organizing separate efforts this year.

“While getting into ArtPrize is important, we wanted to focus on how to help all the artists and introduce work to students,” Suchovsky said.

The exhibition is open with free admission through April 19.

Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. 3 p.m. on Saturday, 1-4 p.m. on Sunday.

An artist reception will be held 5-7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 12.

The gallery is hosting a Kid’s Craft Day from 1-3 p.m. on Sunday, April 14 with hands-on activities for families and children of all ages.

ACTion Art Gallery also is hosting two free education days for area students, one today and one next week on Thursday, April 18. Interested teachers should contact ACT directly at 616-885-5866 or email coordinator@artistscreatingtogether.org regarding next week’s education day.

“It’s open to classrooms to come and see the artwork, and we’ll have a couple of artists here to meet them and do a project with them,” Suchovsky said. “Especially for students with disabilities, it’s very powerful and inspiring to have a mentor who’s experiencing the same things they’re going through.”

E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@mlive.com
Subscribe to his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter @ArtsWriter