3nd Quarter

Signature Member Applications

Due August 30th 2025

Maryland Pastel Society members in good standing may submit work to be juried for signature member status.  Applications are accepted on a quarterly basis.

Signature member status represents the member's achieving excellence in the use of soft pastel and application of the principles of design.

Guidelines and Standards

Principles of Design are used when evaluating artwork submitted with applications for Signature status. Ensure that you understand all of the guidelines and that your work displays appropriate qualities as described in the MPS Principles of Design. Visit the Member Resources page to download the MPS Principles of Design.

When you are ready to submit your application packet, send it to signature@  marylandpastelsociety.org

Requirements for artwork:

By submitting your application for Signature membership, you attest that the artwork you submit meets all four of the following:

• Was executed primarily (80 % or more) in soft pastel;
• Is of your own original concept and execution, not derived from any published or created images to which you do not hold the copyright;
• Has not been executed in whole or in part in an instructor-led classroom or workshop setting and;
• Was completed within the past three years.

To complete this application, you will need: 

• Digital images of five paintings, their titles & sizes
• a one-page resume.
• Images should be of high quality, cropped neatly to show only the painting. Do not include frame or any distracting background in the image.
• Size should be reported as Height x Width (H x W) in inches (e.g., 8x10”)

Applications will be reviewed at the Summer MPS Board Meeting. 

Please contact signature @ marylandpastelsociety.org if you have questions.

Fall General Meeting

at

The Compass Atelier

10335 Kensington Pkwy, Kensington, MD 20895

Rita Kirkman will be demonstrating. We are honored to have Rita as the judge and juror of selection for the MPS National Juried Exhibition, "Shades of Pastel 2025" which will be on display at the Glenview Mansion in Rockville, Maryland from October 12 - November 26, 2025.

Rita Kirkman is an extraordinary pastel artist known for her vibrant portraits of both people and animals. Her style showcases her uncanny ability to manipulate light and color to create a breathtaking glow on all of her subjects. Rita's formal education includes a BFA degree from the University of Dayton in 1988. She attended Coppini Academy of Fine Art in San Antonio, TX, from 2001-2003, and attended many pastel workshops from other renowned artists since 2001. She is a Pastel Society of America Master pastelist and an Eminent Pastelist with the International Association of Pastel Societies.

She has consistently won major awards in national and international competitions. Her work has been featured in the Pastel Journal and the Pratique des Arts Spécial Pastel, and published in many others. Her work is in public and private collections all over the world, including the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe, Japan, Africa and Australia.

Visit ritakirkman.com to view Rita's paintings.

Shades of Pastel 2025

NATIONAL JURIED EXHIBITION

October 12-November 26, 2025   

at the Glenview Mansion
603 Edmonston Drive
Rockville, MD 20851

    Click here to see prospectus and to enter.