Guidelines for Artist Submissions
The Riverside Art Museum (RAM) welcomes artist submissions bearing in mind that exhibition programming is generally planned in advance by the curatorial staff with an eye to fully realizing our mission statement and a broad palette of exhibitions and related programming.
If you would like to send in a submission to introduce your artwork to us, we ask that you consider our mission, educational programming, current exhibitions, and our exhibition archive in order to determine whether your submission is an appropriate match for our Museum.
Please submit via mail:
- no more than 20 digital images of your most recent, original artwork on a CD (which will not be returned), including titles, media, dimensions, etc. (Do not send original artwork or otherwise irreplaceable materials. RAM cannot be held responsible for unsolicited original artwork and no materials will be returned.)
- any necessary background materials.
Send your materials in a small envelope not to exceed 9x12 inches to:
Riverside Art Museum
ATTN: Artist Submission
3425 Mission Inn Ave.
Riverside, CA 92501
The Museum will not accept phone calls or emails or grant in-person appointments, but we can assure you that we will review all properly completed submissions.
In the event that we wish to further consider your work, we will contact you directly.
Thank you for your interest in the Riverside Art Museum.
Note: RAM will not perform appraisals or authentications of any artwork.
Guidelines for Curatorial Proposals
About RAM and its exhibitions:
The core mission of the Riverside Art Museum (RAM) is to exhibit, educate, collect, and provide scholarship relative to the visual arts. RAM is the largest visual arts museum serving the Inland Empire, exhibiting a wide range of work with an emphasis on American, Californian, and prominent Inland Empire artists. RAM offers a diverse range of exemplary art exhibitions, educational programs, and community outreach events. It is a distinguished yet accessible and welcoming institution that serves as a cultural, collaborative, and educational focal point for the community.
Housed in a National Historic 1929 building (designed originally as a YWCA by Julia Morgan, best known as the architect of Hearst Castle), RAM is a fifty-plus-year-old private, non-profit, cultural arts institution that hosts 50,000 visitors each year. RAM serves the varied communities of the Inland Empire by displaying visual art of the finest quality and mounting related educational and interpretive programs. The Museum’s two-story Spanish Revival building now accommodates six different exhibition spaces; a printmaking center; a classroom and adjoining youth gallery; a permanent collection vault; an arts library; a conference room; administrative offices; the Museum store; an atrium; and a rooftop courtyard.
RAM exhibits traditional and contemporary art of all kinds, in all media. Guest curators may propose solo or group exhibitions whose subjects relate to the Museum’s annual exhibition themes. The theme this year is California Culture. 2012's theme is Inland Empire Exposed.
We encourage exhibitions representing a diversity of gender, ethnicity, and cultural background. Potential curators not familiar with RAM's exhibitions or our physical venue are encouraged to visit the Museum.
RAM provides:
RAM hosts selected exhibitions for a period of 3 – 4 months; coordinates with curators and artists receipt of shipped artworks and artists’ texts; promotes, installs, de-installs, and displays exhibitions, as well as archiving exhibitions on its website; ships artwork (and covers portion of expenses); provides nail-to-nail insurance for artwork; coordinates educational programming with curators; and provides honoraria to curators and artists when and where funding permits. (RAM collaborates with curators in raising funding for exhibits.)
What to include in your proposal:
- A list of what will be on display (artists, titles, media, dimensions, proposed layout).
- A one-page description of the exhibit.
- Curatorial bio or resume, with contact information.
- Visuals submitted as jpegs. (Please submit link to images online or provide on CD.)
- A description of target audiences.
- Examples of at least two programs (talks, speakers, workshops, etc.) in conjunction with the exhibit.
- A list of what equipment and materials are needed to present pieces, if applicable. (Moveable walls, pedestals, etc.)
Optional but encouraged:
- A proposed funding strategy identifying potential sponsors, grants, etc.
- A proposed marketing strategy (with budget).
Please send to:
Riverside Art Museum
Attn: Curatorial Proposal
3425 Mission Inn Ave
Riverside, CA 92501
