The International Polymer Clay Association and the ACREs of Opportunity committee are please to announce the jurors for the 2009 competition.

Walter Hazzard is the creator and owner of Topeo Gallery in New York and New Hope, Pa and is celebrating his thirtieth year in business.  He has juried the Niche Awards for Niche Magazine, jurys for the ACRE show in Las Vegas and Wholesale Crafts.com as well as local and regional fine craft venues.  Topeo was twice voted the Top Retailer of American Craft in the USA and is now in the Craft Retailers Hall of Fame.  His two galleries represent nearly 500 artists in all mediums with an emphasis on art glass and jewelry.

Acknowledged internationally as an innovator and leading polymer clay artist and teacher, Sandra McCaw's stylistic hallmarks are precision and attention to detail. Masterful use of color and intricacy of pattern distinguish her work. She says, 'My inspiration derives from a fascination with the interplay of color, line and form. In working with polymer clay, I am able to create complex patterns where lines seem to lose their distinction and blend, and where colors bloom and merge. Polymer clay, with its richness of color and flexibility, allows me to create the intricate patterns that I love.'

McCaw's award winning polymer clay jewelry has been exhibited internationally and highly published. One of her flower brooches graces the cover of The Art of Jewelry, Polymer Clay. McCaw's work was selected as a Niche Awards finalist and won a Best of Jewelry award from the League of NH Craftsmen in 2009. Her work is represented in the permanent collection of the Racine Art Museum, frequently regarded as North America's principal museum of Fine Craft. Sandra is one of the winners of the 2007 ACREs of Opportunity competition and served as mentor to the 2008 winners.

Applications are now being accepted on-line, through November 15, via CaFÉ Call for Entry . The jurying fee for this opportunity is $35.00. Criteria for judging will include originality, artisanship, and how well the individual pieces represent a unified signature style.

With your application, you'll be asked to submit five photos representative of your work. So now is the time to consider which of your works is best suited for the wholesale market and begin taking photographs. Remember, these photos are the only opportunity the jurors will have to view your selected pieces, so they should be the best quality possible! In the meantime, you can begin to select a group of five photos, representative of your work that you would sell to the wholesale market, to submit with your application.

For more information, contact Barbara Fajardo, ACREs of Opportunity Chair .