CALL FOR ENTRIES!
2026, 35th Annual CWS State Watercolor Exhibition

June 2, 2026 to August 12, 2026

Lakewood Cultural Center, 470 S. Allison Parkway, Lakewood, Colorado 80226

Register on ArtCall at https://cwsstate2026.artcall.org/

Schedule

Submission Deadline
Monday April 13, 2026, 11:59pm

Artist Notification
Monday April 27, 2026 via email

Art Delivered by Hand
Monday June 1, 2026 10–noon

Exhibition Opens to the Public
Tuesday June 2, 2026 at 9am

Opening Reception & Award Ceremony
Friday, June 12, 2026, 6–8pm
Awards announced at 6:30pm

Exhibition Dates
June 2 thru August 12, 2026

Pick Up Unsold Art
Thursday August 13, 2026 10am–noon

Eligibility

This exhibit is open to all artists 18 years of age or older that (1) reside in Colorado, or (2) reside in the United States and are Colorado Watercolor Society members. Each artist may enter up to 3 paintings. Accepted artists will not have more than 1 painting in the Exhibition.

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.

Original Work

Artwork must be the artist’s original work.
No copies or likenesses of another artist’s work, no copies or partial copies of any published source whether copyrighted or not copyrighted, and no copies of any published material from the internet, videos, magazines, or newspapers are permitted.
Reference photographs must be taken by the artist. No use of other people’s photos, even if permission is permitted.
No work done in a class or workshop, or under the direction of anyone but the artist is permitted.
Any collage material must be produced by the artist by application of watermedia to paper and the design must be original.
Digital media, photography, prints, reproductions and AI (artificial intelligence) generated work are not permitted.
The painting must be painted by the Artist and not in collaboration with anyone else. The artist may be asked to provide the reference photo if there is a question of originality.

Additional requirements

Paintings must have been completed within the last two years starting from January 1, 2024 to present.
Paintings may not have been previously shown in a juried or non-juried exhibition sponsored by CWS or another Colorado watercolor society.
Paintings exhibited in Colorado in an exhibition sponsored by a regional, national, or international watercolor society are permitted.
Prices and all information on this registration are considered final and may not be changed after the submission deadline.
Accepted artwork may not be shown or be for sale in another exhibition, virtual or in person, at the same time as this Exhibition.
Artwork must be on display for the duration of the Exhibition.
The artist's signature must appear on the front of the painting.

Presentation

Maximum Art size: (not including frame) 22” x 30”.
Minimum image size: 80 square inches.
All paintings must be delivered framed (including paintings under plexiglass and paintings that are sealed or varnished). Only gallery quality frames are permitted.
No frame moulding over five inches wide per side is permitted.
All frames must have hardware with picture wire in place. Sawtooth hangers are not permitted.
All artwork must either be under plexiglass of a thickness that does not buckle, or the entire exposed surface must be sealed with an acrylic based varnish or waterproof wax. Glass and mylar may not be used.
Artwork that is not sealed with varnish or wax must be matted, including floated work.
Mats must be white. The minimum mat width on the narrowest side may not be less than 3".
Colored liners or fillets are permitted but may not be larger than 1/4”.
Paintings that are vanished or sealed with wax may not be matted and must be framed in a manner similar to an oil painting.
Paintings delivered with chipped, cracked, damaged, dirty or improper presentation will not be hung.

Rules/Read Carefully

CWS reserves the right to refuse any painting that does not comply with the requirements stated in this call for entry or does not match the submitted image. All information provided, including price, is final and may not be changed after the submission deadline. Failure to comply with these rules or meet any requirements in this Call for Entry may result in disqualification of your entry, ineligibility to enter future CWS exhibits for a minimum of two years and a forfeiture of any award. If you fail to deliver your work, if it is accepted, you will be ineligible to enter future CWS exhibits for a minimum of two years.

File Format

Please submit jpeg files only. The resolution must be 300 dpi. Submissions must be under 4mb with a minimum dimension of 540px and a maximum dimension of 1920px on the longest side. ArtCall will permanently resize submissions.

Fees

The entry fee is $30 for CWS members + $6 for each additional entry up to 3 total entries and $40 for non-CWS members + $8 for each additional entry up to 3 total entries.

Delivery and Pickup

Instructions for delivery, pick up and shipping will be provided with notification of acceptance. There will be a $50 handling fee for shipped work.

Sales of Artwork

All entries must be for sale. No price changes will be accepted. A 15% commission will be taken by the Lakewood Cultural Center, and a 10% commission will be charged by CWS. The artist will receive 75% of the price charged on their sales. Commission checks will be mailed to artists within 45 days of exhibition close.

Liability

Neither the exhibiting venue, nor the Colorado Watercolor Society nor their officers, directors, staff, or volunteers, nor any receiving or shipping agent will be liable for loss or damage to any artwork submitted to this exhibition. Insurance of the artwork is the responsibility of the individual artist.

Use of Images

The artist grants the Colorado Watercolor Society and the exhibiting venue permission to photograph artwork submitted to this exhibit, and images of selected artwork may be used for publicity, including a catalog, web gallery, or slide show, at the discretion of CWS and the exhibiting venue.