Call for Proposals – ITAA Annual Conference

Live and Mounted Design Exhibitions

Submission Deadline – June 1

ITAA design scholars are invited to submit proposals to present original design work at the ITAA annual conference, during the Live and Mounted Design Exhibitions. Work must have been executed within the last 3 years and not previously shown at an ITAA Annual Conference. Work must be constructed by the designer(s), and must be completed at time of submission. Undergraduate student member submissions must have a faculty sponsor. The sponsor must be an ITAA active, reserve, or emeritus member, and one individual can sponsor up to six entries. It is the responsibility of the ITAA sponsor to screen the entries for quality, completeness, and accuracy and to be actively involved in the submission process. The sponsor will retrieve the design work at the conference if the student does not attend. All design work presented at the annual conference will be included in the online ITAA Proceedings. Up to 3 entries per designer or co-designer in any combination of categories may be submitted. A designer whose work is accepted, or the sponsor, must attend the ITAA Annual Conference and register for the conference by September 15, allowing the conference organizing committee adequate time to prepare the Conference Program.

The purpose of the ITAA Design Exhibition is to provide an arena for design work to be juried and shown as a form of scholarship. Graduate, undergraduate, and professional designs will be juried as separate categories. If more than one person contributes to a design, the creators will be designated as co-designers. If a faculty member is listed as a co-designer on a student entry, the entry will be reviewed at the “Professional Level”. The ITAA Design Exhibition includes a live gallery (static or runway) and a mounted exhibit.

Preparation for Design Exhibition Submission: You must be an active ITAA member to submit a design for exhibition. Each entrant should log into the ITAA website. If you do not have an ITAA user name and password, you will be redirected to the ITAA website to join or renew as a member, pay your dues and create your user name and password at the ITAA site. You must have an account with Juried Art Services before you begin the submission process. No payment is required to create an account with JAS, but you must have an account in its system to complete the submission process.

1. Select a category for review and presentation:

Fiber Art – Textile, apparel, or accessory items with emphasis on aesthetics and the use of materials, surface design techniques, and/or couture construction. This category can include apparel or non-wearable two- or three-dimensional designs. If a garment’s stated priority is the surface design or weave structure, a commercial pattern or pattern from another source may be used. The pattern source must be identified. Formats include:

FALG – Fiber Art Live Gallery

FAME – Fiber Art Mounted Exhibit

Target Market – Garment constructed by the designer from an original pattern, with emphasis on materials, aesthetics, garment structure, and wearability. This category includes designs targeted toward a specific consumer, market group, or function. Formats include:

TMLG – Target Market Live Gallery

TMME – Target Market Mounted Exhibit

2. Select a level for review: PRO – Professional; GRS – Graduate Student; UGS – Undergraduate Student

3. Create a name or title for your piece (30 word maximum). Do not use all capital letters or special characters, such as colons (:), asterisks (*), or forward slashes (/). These symbols mean something else in HTML language, so cannot be included in the title so that it translates correctly for the online Proceedings.

4. Photograph images of your design. Take a copy of the copyright agreement with you and obtain signatures of the photographer and, if appropriate, the model. Items should be photographed as they would be used, i.e., apparel must be photographed against a plain background on a live model, mannequin, or dress form. Non-apparel items must be displayed as they would be exhibited. Photograph the following:

Image A. Full front view

Image B. Full back view of apparel items or different angle view of non-apparel items

Image C. Interesting design or construction detail

5. Prepare and preserve originals of images of your design in JPEG format, CMYK color mode, with size set to 5” x 7” with at least 300 dpi resolution. If your design is accepted into the exhibition, these photographs will be used for the Design Catalog.

6. Prepare a statement about your design describing the purpose of the piece; the design process, including how you implemented the process; the techniques used to create the piece; the materials used; date completed; and measurements or dimensions. You have a maximum of 250 words for this section. There should be no identifying information about the designers in this statement. If your design is accepted into the exhibition, information from this statement will be used for the Design Catalogue.

7. Plan for payment of review fee ($20 per submission). Be prepared to pay the submission fee at the time of the online submission. As part of the undergraduate membership in ITAA, undergraduate students may submit one entry for free.

Detailed instructions for online submission are posted separately on the ITAA Website.

Review Process: Each submission will be reviewed by a double-blind jury of your peers. The jury will view the Abstract and Images submission only and evaluate each entry based on: (1) Statement of purpose; (2) Implementation of purpose or process; (3) Aesthetics and visual impact; (4) Quality of technique and execution; and (5) Innovation of design. Acceptance or rejection for the ITAA Design Exhibition will be based on the jury’s scores.

An on-site review by a set of judges based on physical inspection and submitted abstract of each submission will determine award recipients. Entries may be disqualified at any level of the review process. Entries may be disqualified if a design is not delivered on time or by the carrier stipulated in the acceptance email with the appropriate return postage. Designs may also be disqualified if the submitter (or the submitter’s sponsor) has not registered for conference on or before September 15. If the overall construction is judged to be poor during the on-site review, or if an apparel design is not easily donned or doffed, the entry may be disqualified. The minimum openings in non-stretchable fabrics are: neckline 22”; waistline 28”; hipline 37”; and pant hem circumference 12”. Knee-length or longer slim-fit skirts must have a vent, slit, or flare to allow adequate runway walking ease. Side-seam zippers in bodices must open completely at the arms eye to allow garments to fit over dress forms that do not compress. An image of the garment as it is worn is to be included with all accepted pieces. Detailed directions for donning and doffing non-standard garments also should be provided. Submitters are responsible for all customs fees and charges.

Follow Up: Entrants and their sponsors, if applicable, will be notified via email of the outcome of the jury review, and designers of accepted entries will be emailed guidelines for the delivery of their piece(s) to the annual meeting site where awards will be determined. Sponsors must be able to deliver and retrieve sponsored designs. Items selected for both the Mounted and Live Exhibit will need to be delivered or shipped to the exhibit site and items for the Mounted Exhibit must remain until that exhibit closes.

Preparation of the 2013 Proceedings files. Proceedings files for accepted design entries must be submitted by September 15 for the design to be included in the Design Exhibition. Proceedings template and guidelines for preparation of proceedings articles are available on the ITAA website.

Non-Liability: Reasonable care will be taken in handling and displaying accepted items. Neither ITAA nor the facility hosting the exhibit assumes responsibility for loss, liability, or damages incurred before, during or after the ITAA Design Exhibition.

Questions?:

executivedirector@itaaonline.org for Nancy Rutherford, Executive Director of ITAA

VP_Scholarship@itaaonline.org for Ginger Woodard, VP for Scholarship