Benefits of Membership

Membership is open to any artist who resides in Dane County. Application for Artist level membership is a juried process which opens in August and closes in September. Exact dates change from year-to-year. New Artist members are juried in September.

MAG is an active organization which offers its members many opportunities for showing, selling, and discussing their artwork as well as educational programs for growing as an artist.

• January Showcase Takes place each January/February each year at the UW Hospital. 
• Summer Salon Takes place each June/July at the UW Hospital. It is a juried show with awards and a reception. 
• Art Fair on the Square MAG has a double tent each year, and 4 MAG members are chosen by qualifying lottery.
• Middleton Art Walk is an art fair in Middleton where MAG has a double tent and 4 artists are chosen to participate by qualifying lottery.
• Firefly Coffeehouse in Oregon, WI hosts an annual show for 2 months of member work. The work can be for sale, and Firefly takes no commission.
• MAG maintains a private Facebook page where members are encouraged to post events and other information of interest to members.

MAG holds a number of informal gatherings throughout the year for socializing and sharing artwork:

• Monthly Art Nights is held monthly at member’s homes where we share, critique and discuss art that is brought by members.
• MAG Bimonthly meetings are held virtually staring in January and cover the business of MAG, upcoming events, calls for volunteers, etc.
• MAG Annual Dinner is held at a local restaurant each October where we share fun, community and friendship. New members are invited to attend and bring a sample of their artwork to share.
• MAG Website Artist Profiles provide a page for each Artist member to post information about themselves, as well as images of their artwork.
• MAG Annual Pot Luck Picnic is held in August at a member’s home or local park shelter. It’s an opportunity for camaraderie and relaxation.

Active membership requires each member to patriciate in at least one MAG show each year (January Showcase or Summer Salon), as well as to support MAG as an organization by volunteering in some capacity. MAG is an all-volunteer run organization which depends on its
members’ support. Volunteering ranges from becoming a Board member, to chairing or co-chairing a committee, hosting an art night, helping with shows. Most of the volunteer positions entail ‘seasonal’ activity which means that there are times during the year when it may require more time than at others. Volunteering is a perfect opportunity to meet people and make friends.

How to Apply

New Artist member jurying takes place each August-September and requires that you fill out an online application, submit 4 examples of your work, complete an Artist Statement which explains why you do what you do and where you get your inspiration, and explain what mediums you work in.

Jurying Details

Artists interested in becoming Artist Members of MAG with full membership privileges are required to submit 4 examples of their artwork using .jpeg files. We utilize a judge who is active in the art world to evaluate your work based on three criteria:

1. Originality/creativity
2. Composition/design
3. Technical skill

To ensure a fair and unbiased process, your application is scrubbed of any personal information, and each artist’s entry is assembled under a pseudonym such as ‘Entry 1’, ‘Entry 2’, etc. The judge has access only to your application and pseudonym, your artwork samples and your Artist Statement. Do not include any identifiable information such as awards, recognitions, organizations you belong to, etc. in your Artist Statement. This statement should focus on why you make art, where you draw your inspiration, why you work in your particular medium, etc.

Membership Dues

Once your application has been judged, you will receive a score along with notes from the judge. Qualifying applicants will be invited to join MAG as an Artist member.

Dues are $50 and are paid each September.

If you have questions or would like to discuss your interest in applying to the Guild, please contact newmembers@madisonartguild.com

Not ready for the jury process, but would like to be involved with the MAG?  New in 2024 – become an Associate Member!  See more details here:  https://www.madisonartguild.com/about/honorary-members/