Talk: Underwater Photography – with Jamie Hellard

In 2025 the submission fee has been increased to $20 (+GST) per piece, making the total including GST = $21/piece.
The exhibition fee remains at $40 per accepted piece, however GST will be added at the time of payment.

The Sooke Fine Arts Society is a not-for-profit organization, and fees are one part of how we offset the costs of marketing, venue rental, and gallery infrastructure in order to continue nurturing the careers of the region’s fine artists.

The commission is 30% on all art sales.

Yes, please contact the SFAS Office to arrange a visit: 250-642-7256 / sfas@sookefinearts.com

As long as the piece was completed within 18 months of the start of the current show, and has not been shown in any other major, juried shows on BC’s Coastal Islands, it can be submitted. Since our jury panel changes each year, a piece not accepted one year may very well be selected the following year.

Yes, the jurors can magnify the images to see fine detail and texture. This is why we ask images be a minimum of 1500 pixels to preserve details in your work. Please note that selections for awards are made in person, in Sooke, following Art Drop-Off.

Each year, we receive approximately 1,500 submissions, and with space to exhibit only about 370–380 pieces, the selection process is incredibly competitive. Prior to jurying all pieces are reviewed by our Adjudication team to ensure compliance with the guidelines. When jurying starts, the jurors adjudicate separately and score the artworks on a scale. The average score for each piece helps to determine if the piece is selected. Selections are then reviewed to ensure that only two pieces per artist are selected, as our guidelines, the end goal of which is to have more artists in the show.

We understand that it can be disappointing to learn that your piece was not accepted into the show. Please know that adjudication is not done lightly, and that we value all submissions.
Due to the high volumes of strong work we receive, the jury has to make difficult decisions to create a cohesive exhibition. Please know that having your work not selected doesn’t reflect on its quality or artistic merit. We encourage you to continue submitting to future calls for artists, as work that isn’t selected one year, may still be selected the subsequent year by a different panel of jurors.

The minimum price for artwork is $350. Like any Gallery, there are fees and commissions associated with the show and sale of artwork. Artists are asked to consider the following when setting their price:

• Cost of materials
• Originality/uniqueness of the concept
• Creative time invested
• Framing /presentation costs
• Submission and exhibition fees
• 30% commission fee

For a more comprehensive guide to pricing work please refer to reputable artist resources such as : The Emily Car University Pricing Guide.

All work submitted for adjudication must be available for sale.

No. Work submitted for adjudication must be completed. We recommend finishing your piece before the Call to Artists ends.

You can make changes to your submission before the deadline. No changes will be accepted after the close of submissions on June 1, 2025.

No, a Certificate of Authenticity (C-of-A) is not required at the submission stage, but if your piece is part of a limited edition run, a C-of-A will be expected if your piece is accepted into the show, and will be required to accompany your piece when delivered to the show.

The stipulation that artwork must be completed in the last 18 months, and not have been shown locally in another major, juried art show on BC’s Coastal Islands is designed to keep our show fresh, with works that have not been seen at other shows in our region, and to encourage artists to share new work.

The more we can present a diverse, unique show, the more we help promote the joy of art in our region.

The requirement specifies the combination of all three elements – major/juried/in BC’s Coastal Islands – for a piece to be ineligible to be shown in the Sooke Fine Arts Show.

There is no requirement to show the frame in the images submitted for adjudication. This will allow 2D pieces to be photographed prior to framing, or scanned in a flatbed scanner for high-quality images. However, artwork selected for the show is expected to meet gallery standards of display. We recommend having your work professionally framed if it is accepted into the show. Proper framing and display can significantly enhance the saleability of your work. Any framing that does not meet show standards may be refused.

Check out our resource page on Photographing Artwork for tips and tricks on getting a clear, representative image of your artwork. If the piece has darker tones, try a lighter backdrop, and vice versa.
Past Sooke Fine Arts Show jurors have recommended placing something next to your piece to offer the viewer a better sense of the scale of your work. In your optional 25-word description, mention the extra object is for scale only.

There is no way to know in advance which pieces, or even which kinds of pieces, will be accepted. We receive a wide range of submissions in all categories, and each year an independent panel of three new jurors are invited to review all the submissions to select the pieces that will appear in the show. Due to space limitations, we can only accept approximately 375-380 pieces into the show. Because the jurors change from year to year, there is truly no way to know which pieces they will select.

Jurors are not able to provide feedback on why pieces were not accepted. There are simply too many pieces and jurying is done separately. However it is important to keep in mind that pieces not accepted one year can still be accepted a subsequent year, as long as they were completed within 18 months of the subsequent show.

In 2025, there will be two drop off dates:
– July 11, 4:00pm – 8:00pm
– July 12, 9:30am – 4:30pm

If artists have trouble with either of those dates, they can arrange for their accepted works & gift shop items to be delivered by a friend, or have them couriered to arrive July 11. Since Art Drop-off involves many volunteers and a very structured process, we are not able to accommodate the receipt of pieces outside of these timeframes.

It is not uncommon for photographers to tweak brightness, contrast, white balance, etc of their images. The term “creatively altered” in our guidelines refers more to additional work that significantly alters the composition of the image. Some artists choose to make a point of saying when absolutely no alterations have been made to the original. When in doubt, it is best to state what has been done – i.e mention in the description “standard adjustments made to light balance & sharpness” – in order to inform the jurors during adjudication.

To qualify as a part-time resident within our catchment (BC’s Coastal Islands) – the artist must reside at at least 3 months of the year within our catchment, and maintain their own mailing address within this region, to be eligible.

Once an artist fully moves out of the region they are no longer eligible to apply.
Whilst we support the work of all artists, we have to manage our catchment carefully in order to maintain fairness to the artists in our region.

Artists can arrange to have a friend deliver their work on July 12, or have it couriered to the arena (for arrival July 11), and can sometimes arrange delivery with other artists of accepted works. The SFAS Office can help determine if there are other artists in your area who might be willing to share transportation down to Sooke.

No, you do not need to include tax in your price, as taxes are added on at the time of sale.

You can submit the original digital image, and in fact that is the preferred way to highlight the art, unless the framing and display is particularly unique or integral to the meaning or message of the piece.

We do not recommend artists submit the same pieces to both shows. Notification for SSNAP happens after our submission deadline. If your piece is accepted to SSNAP, and you decide to pull your piece from our show, it would be considered breaking the agreement to show your work in SFAS, which could result in an administration fee equal to 15% of the sale price of the removed artwork. We take this very seriously, as it means that another artist may have missed the opportunity to exhibit in the SFAS.

An artist posting their work on their own personal website or social media is fine, and does contravene our guidelines.

The finished dimensions of a piece refer to the total overall space it will take up including any framing or matting that go around the piece. For 2D artwork (including diptychs and triptychs, etc) the maximum this can be is 7’ 6” x 7’ 6” (228cm x 228cm). For 3D works, a maximum of 9’ 0” (108” or 274cm) in height applies.

All artist fees will have GST added. The total for a each fee type including tax is therefore as follows:
– Submission fee: $21/piece
– Exhibition fee: $42/piece

Applicable taxes on artwork sold at the Sooke Fine Arts Show are added to the price set by the artist; the Sooke Fine Arts Society collects and remits these taxes on behalf of the artist. Taxes do not affect the commission.

Jurors are on-site in the gallery in July to select outstanding pieces for award recognition. Prior to the show, the Sooke Fine Arts Show Designer & Design Committee select the award winning “Designers’ Choice” to be used in all promotional materials for the following year. Award Winners are notified prior to the show.

The People’s Choice and Children’s Choice Awards are both tallied from survey results collected during the show, with winners announced after the show.

Understandably, some patrons may choose to contact artists directly, and while this may seem like an opportunity to provide work at a lower price, we ask that artists encourage patrons to complete their purchases through the show.

The Sooke Fine Arts Society is a not-for-profit entity, and art sales are a very important part of how we offset the costs of marketing, venue rental, and gallery infrastructure in order to continue nurturing the careers of the region’s fine artists.

If your work sells, someone from the Art Sales desk will call you immediately with the good news. If your gift shop items sell out or need to be replenished, you will be informed by someone from the Gift Shop team. Artists can also contact the Sooke Fine Arts office at 250-642-7256, or by email sfas@sookefinearts.com.

Artist payments are scheduled for the last week of August each year, and are sent out by cheque. The process of cross-checking the gift shop inventory, art sales and demos/talks/tours takes time and a lot of careful work to ensure accuracy.

If you haven’t received your cheque by mid-September, please get back in touch. You can contact the Sooke Fine Arts office at 250-642-7256, or by email sfas@sookefinearts.com.

Yes, you may sell more that one edition. If you sell a print or photography piece that is part of a run 25 or less(as per our exhibition and submission guidelines), all subsequent pieces of the run you wish to sell must be sold at the same price and be of the same display quality as the one in the gallery. If the piece was framed, subsequent pieces must be framed to the same standard once sold.

Click here: SFAS Volunteer Code of Conduct. There is also a link to the Volunteer Code of Conduct on each of the team info pages.

Click on the small right arrow at the top of the calendar next to July to view the August calendar.

The volunteer shifts are organized in a calendar-view by default, but you can view all jobs/shifts within a particular area in list format. Simply click on the list icon above the top, right corner of the calendar.

No problem. Simply contact our volunteer coordinator, Gunny: lifeisgoodinsooke@gmail.com, and she will help you out!

Maybe! Please contact our volunteer coordinator, Gunny, to give you a hand:
lifeisgoodinsooke@gmail.com
250-588-5852

Some teams manage their own volunteers and so not all jobs are posted publicly. If you are interested in helping out on a particular team, you can contact our volunteer coordinator, Gunny Tennese:
lifeisgoodinsooke@gmail.com
250-588-5852

You will receive an email notification 2 days before your scheduled shift.

You can contact our volunteer coordinator, Gunny Tennese:
lifeisgoodinsooke@gmail.com
250-588-5852