Ephemeral Art Application

2026 Artist Application

Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community (RAAC) Ephemeral Art Program

The Rappahannock Association for Arts and the Community (RAAC) and the Rappahannock League for Environmental Protection (RLEP), in partnership with the Sperryville Community Alliance (SCA), is once again offering artists from Rappahannock County or immediately surrounding areas the opportunity to participate in its annual Ephemeral Art Program.

Ephemeral art is art that is non-permanent, brief, fleeting. It’s a term that usually describes art that happens once and is not preserved as a lasting object in a museum or private collection. The Ephemeral Art Program invites artists to create art from natural materials taken from the environment at hand – leaves, sticks, rocks, earth, and manmade or found objects. For 2026, artists will select a location on the Sperryville River Trail to install their work.

Applications to the 2026 Ephemeral Art Program will be reviewed by a select committee made up of RAAC, RLEP, and SCA members. All applications will be submitted through this website and are due by August 7, 2026. Selected applicants will be notified by mid-August and will install their art during the weekend of September 5-6. They will be required to maintain their installations through the weekend of November 7-8, which is the weekend of the Fall Art Tour. Artists will be responsible for fully removing all trace of their art from its installation site by no later than November 14.

Selected applicants will receive an award of $300.

Artist name *

Home address (Note that this competition is only open to residents of Rappahannock County and the immediately surrounding area) *

Phone number *

Email *

Social media (website, social media handles, etc.)

How did you hear about the RAAC Ephemeral Art Program? What attracts you to ephemeral art? *

Briefly describe the general concept and goals for your proposed ephemeral art project. *

Describe your proposed art installation: The size? Principal materials? Your plan for installing and removing it? Any special equipment needed to install it? Any ongoing maintenance required? *

With as much detail as you can, please describe the specific location of your art installation on the Sperryville River Trail. Note that the only section of trail available for installations is the initial portion that begins behind Before & After and runs up to the Sperryville Schoolhouse (where Black Twig is located). Please also explain why are you selecting that particular location. *

While not a requirement, do you have prior experience in creating ephemeral art? If so, please describe your experience.

Message

If my Ephemeral Art proposal is selected, I understand that I will be required to accept and sign the following statement:

As a participating artist in the 2026 Ephemeral Art Program, I understand that my art installation must be fully in place by no later than September 6, 2026. I will ensure that it remains in place, including the performance of any required maintenance as necessary, through November 8 2026, and will remove it by the designated removal date of November 14, 2026. I agree to indemnify and hold harmless RAAC, RLEP, and SCA for any injury or damage related to the installation, maintenance, and/or removal of my art installation, and I agree to restore the location of my art installation as closely as possible to its original condition once my art is removed. I further agree to be available for photographs, interviews, and other media efforts, if requested by RAAC, in order to promote the Ephemeral Art Program to the community, and to credit RAAC and co-sponsors RLEP and SCA in any public statements regarding my art installation specifically or the Ephemeral Art Program in general.

Sperryville River Trail

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Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community
PO Box 24
Washington, VA 22747

info@raac.org
800-695-6075

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