THE WEIGHT ROOM

Priority Application Deadlines

• Winter Exhibitions: October 31
• Spring/Summer Exhibitions: March 31
• Fall Exhibitions: July 31

Who May Apply?

Priority is given to students within the Department of Art. Exhibitions that originate outside of the Department of Art may be considered, but will receive lower priority. See our Externally Originating Exhibition section under our Gallery Policies tab.

Schedule

Each exhibition slot is approximately three weeks. This will include installation and take down of the exhibition. Exact exhibition slot dates can be found on the Application.

Faculty Advisors

Each proposed exhibition must have a Department of Art Faculty Advisor who agrees in advance to mentor students and others through the exhibition process. By agreeing to be an advisor, they are signaling their faith in your abilities to stage a compelling exhibition. If you do not know any full-time faculty in the art department, it may be best to postpone applying for an exhibition until you know one well enough to ask them to be your advisor. Contact your potential advisor well in advance of the priority application deadline to discuss your plans and see if they will agree to advise you.

Supporting Documents

You will be asked to upload 3–5 high-quality images of representative artwork. We understand that the work may not be completed yet, but upload works that are representative of art that may appear in the exhibition. EACH FILE MUST BE UNDER 500KB.

In addition, you will need to submit a proposal between 100 and 400 words detailing your plans for the exhibition, proposed installation strategies, etc.

Any questions should be sent to gallery_director@byu.edu.

Department of Art Exhibition Guidelines

• All student applicants must receive approval from a Department of Art faculty advisor to exhibit artwork in department spaces. After an application is made, the faculty advisor listed on the form will be contacted for confirmation of their involvement. Applications will not move forward without faculty acknowledgement.
• Exhibitions that originate from outside of the Department of Art may be considered, but must have a Department of Art faculty advisor. These exhibitions and non-student applications are considered, but receive lower priority than student exhibitions from within the department. See Externally Originating Exhibitions below.
• Exhibitions should display works that demonstrate quality, skill, and craftsmanship in both concept and execution.
• Artworks that are physically dangerous and/or advocate practices contrary to the aims of the governing institution will be excluded from display. See the Potentially Sensitive Content section below.
• The galleries have a commitment to be thoughtful and sensitive in displaying works of art dealing with the draped or undraped figure and other sensitive content. If it is deemed that sensitive content may be displayed in department facilities, it may be reserved to more secluded spaces that allow for notification of the public regarding the work on display prior to entering the space.

Guidelines and Expectations for Faculty Advisors

It is the expectation of faculty advisors that they will be actively involved in the development of the exhibition under their stewardship—counseling with the student about how to plan the exhibition, display work, properly prepare it for display, and address conceptual and material concerns. The faculty advisor should be more than just a name on a piece of paper. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate regularly with their faculty advisor and seek their counsel.

If a faculty advisor is concerned that content in an upcoming exhibition may be sensitive, they must alert the gallery director immediately so the issue can be peacefully resolved with thoughtful discussion between faculty and the exhibiting student. Upper administration may participate in discussions when necessary and appropriate.

Review/Acceptance Process

Priority deadlines for fall and winter exhibitions are held twice a year: once in late July or early August and once in October. Applications received prior to the deadlines will be considered for priority placement and scheduling. Applications received after the deadline can only be scheduled in spaces that may be available after priority applicants are scheduled. Students who must exhibit their work as part of their degree should be aware of and adhere to these deadlines.

Applications are reviewed by the gallery director and gallery committee with input from the department chair and college dean as necessary and appropriate. The committee will evaluate each proposal based on the following criteria:

• relevance to department academic programs and curricula
• artistic merit of proposal
• expense of proposed exhibit
• compliance with Department Exhibition Guidelines

Priority is given to applications received prior to the priority application deadline, then capstone exhibitions receive priority over other exhibitions.

A letter of notification will be sent to the applicant upon completion of the review process. The committee will designate the exhibit space and dates for accepted proposals.

Art department facilities are not the only options for students to exhibit their work. There are also gallery spaces in the Harold B. Lee Library and there are off-campus options students can pursue independently.

Externally Originating Exhibitions

The following review process is used with exhibitions that are not proposed by students or faculty in the Department of Art. These are referred to as externally originating exhibitions. These exhibitions will not receive scheduling priority even if applications are received by the priority deadline. If space and resources are available, externally originating exhibitions will be considered.

Potentially Sensitive Content

We expect artists to explore their mediums and concepts. This can sometimes mean that artists tread into territories that may be sensitive for our viewers and social context at Brigham Young University. Work that contains sensitive content that has not been cleared by gallery staff runs the risk of being excluded from exhibiting.

Not all work is appropriate in all contexts. Traditional landscape painting might be out of place in a cutting-edge contemporary space. In turn, experimental performance art might be out of place in a traditional landscape gallery. The Galleries of Art at BYU adhere to the mission of BYU, and as such, there is some content that may be better exhibited elsewhere. Our buildings are academic structures as well as venues for worship and a sensitivity to audiences should be expected. We encourage artists to create the work they need to without concern for what we may or may not exhibit on campus. Artists can work with faculty mentors to select the best venues for their work. There are many gallery spaces on and off campus that can provide appropriate architecture, audiences, and contexts.

Sensitive content may include, but is not limited to:

• Licentious/sexualized content
• Nude (undraped) figures
• Safety concerns (i.e., dangerous objects, hazardous chemicals, allergens, etc.)
• Violence
• Topical political content

Works that deal with this type of content will not be rejected outright. All applications will receive thorough and thoughtful consideration and discussion. It may be that with appropriate display and context, we can accommodate such works. This will be determined through conversations with the applicant.

Exhibiting artists who have concerns that their work may be excluded from exhibition because of sensitive content should discuss these concerns with their faculty advisor and gallery director as early as possible. The earlier we can address these issues, the sooner we can come to a suitable arrangement. We encourage these conversations so that we can support you.

These resources are made available to The Weight Room exhibitors as they prepare for their exhibitions.

• The Weight Room floor plan (PDF)
• Exhibitor Handbook (Google Doc)
• PR Form (Google Form)
• The Weight Room map handout template (Illustrator file)

Who?

Any current BYU student who has been enrolled in a Department of Art class during the 2022–2023 school year may submit work to the Annual Student Art Exhibition.

When?

For the 2023 exhibition, work may be dropped off in The Weight Room (WCCB 2470) April 6, 7, and 10, 9am– 5pm. When you drop off your work, we will have paper tags ready for artists to fill out and attach to their work. At the time of drop off, artists must also complete a digital submission form with the artist's name, title, year, medium, insurance value, notes, and contact information.

What?

Each student may submit four different artworks for consideration. A diptych or triptych or so on, is considered a single artwork. Rules are as follows:

• Works must have been completed since April 2022
• No "wet" works will be considered—this includes wet paint, sculpture that is still setting, etc.
• All works must be professionally prepared for display (see below)
• All mediums will be considered
• Works should adhere to the Gallery Policies concerning Potentially Sensitive Content

Work should be ready to display. This means 2D works should have a reasonable, professional, and sturdy means to hang them on the wall (see the Artwork Hanging Solutions handout). Frames are preferred, but if appropriate works on paper may be pinned to the wall or adhered with magnets, but the chosen display solution should make sense for the work, and not endanger the work.

3D works should be able to be displayed on the floor, pedestal, or wall, with appropriate hardware or features built in to make the chosen display method possible.

Works that are not prepared appropriately, or have subpar hanging solutions may be disqualified from consideration.

If you are able to drop off the physical object, that is best. Large objects, installations, or other works that are not practical to bring in should be submitted as printed-off images with instructions as necessary. For example, a large-scale installation may be submitted as a few preliminary drawings, renderings, and/or plans along with a brief explanation of how the piece will be installed and experienced. Try to paint the best possible picture for the jurors to understand how amazing your work will be when installed.

Time-based works such as video art, sound art, digital art, and performance pieces should be submitted on a USB jump drive with the following file naming convention: lastname-firstname-title-year. USB jump drives are available at the art office front desk (WCCB 1100) while supplies last. If you have a preferred mode of display—projection, television, speakers, MP3 player, headphones—please include that information with your submission.

If your work needs explanation to understand how it should be displayed or viewed, please type up a brief explanation and include it with your work when you drop it off.

If you have questions about how to best represent, display, or drop off your work, or your work falls into a category not outlined above, please contact the gallery director: gallery_director@byu.edu.

2023 Dates

Drop off: April 6, 7, 10, 9am–5pm @ The Weight Room
Notification of Accepted Works: April 12
Pick Up Work Not in Exhibition: April 12–13, 9am–5pm
Exhibition Opening: Friday, April 14, 7–9pm
Exhibition Dates: April 14–27, M–W, 9am–5pm
Pick Up Exhibition Works: April 28–29, 9am–5pm

If you are unable to drop off your work during the outlined dates and times, make arrangements with friends or family members to drop off for you.

If you are unable to pick up your work during the outlined dates and times, arrange for a friend or family member to pick up the work and alert the gallery director and give him the name of the person who will retrieve the work on your behalf.