By My Hand: Basket Works by Oregon Artists

Call for Entry

With support from the Oregon Community Foundation’s Creative Heights program, we’re inviting artists from across Oregon to submit to By My Hand, a celebration of woven works and basket forms. Artists are asked to submit images of past work, along with their plan for creating a new, ambitious piece (or two).

A jury consisting of master weaver Joey Lavadour (member CTIUR Walla Walla Tribe), Rachel Allen (member of the Nez Perce Tribe/Nimiipuu and Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture), Namita Wiggers (Writer, Curator, Educator, and College of Fellows, American Craft Council), and Roberta Lavadour (PCA Executive Director) will select up to 15 artists to receive a $3400 stipend to support the creation of their proposed ambitious work. Jurors will be looking for proposals that take artists into new territory, experiment with scale, materials, or techniques, and/or otherwise demonstrate creative risk-taking. They will also be looking at samples of past work and description of each artist’s practice to evaluate applicants’ capacity to complete the work if selected.

The project will culminate in an exhibition in the East Oregonian Gallery at the Pendleton Center for the Arts featuring the 1-2 ambitious works completed by each selected artist. Exhibition dates are July 1-31, 2027. All entries will be photographed by PCA and a catalog with an essay by Namita Wiggers and short interviews with artists will be printed after the exhibition.

Artists must have resided in Oregon for the past 12 months and intend to reside in Oregon during the length of the project (through September 2027).

Please direct questions to Roberta Lavadour at director@pendletonarts.org.

Important Dates:

December 12, 2026 11:59 PM – Submissions due via the form below (pendletonarts.org/by-my-hand-application/)

January 12, 2027 – Notifications emailed to selected artists

January 20, 2027 – Payment of 50% of stipend mailed to each participating artist and scheduling of cohort Zoom meeting.

April 2027 – One-on-one check ins with artists

June 25, 2027 – Payment of remaining 50% of stipend mailed to each participating artist upon delivery of finished work to PCA

July 1, 2027 – Opening Reception for By My Hand: Basket Works by Oregon Artists in the East Oregonian Gallery at the Pendleton Center for the Arts

August 2027 – Tentative publication date for the catalog.

By My Hand Application

Applications due December 12, 2026 11:59 PM Pacific Time. Questions? Contact Roberta at director@pendletonarts.org

First and Last Name(Required)

Name pronunciation

We'd love to say your name correctly.

Mailing Address (Street, City, State, Zip)(Required)

Email(Required)

Phone(Required)

Have you resided in Oregon for the past 12 months and do you intend to reside in Oregon for the majority of the project term (October 2026 - September 2027)?(Required)

Yes

Are you a member of a State or Federally recognized Tribe?(Required)

Yes

If yes, please list your Tribal band or cultural group affiliations

Website (optional)

Social media handle(s) (optional)

Instagram, TikTok, etc.

Tell us about your creative practice(Required)

We'd like to know about your experience making baskets, vessels, or other woven works. This may include items made for friends/family, works made for exhibition or sale, or any other ways that fiber work is part of your life.

Project Proposal: What's your ambitious idea?(Required)

Describe the item(s) or work you'd like to accomplish with the help of this project. We are looking for ambitious work that expands your current practice into new territory. Artists might address scale, experimental techniques, new materials, or other facets of risk-taking. While each selected artist will receive only one stipend, the proposal may include things like intergenerational collaborations, or other ways of working with another creator. We can include up to two items from each selected artist, and completed, gallery-ready work must be able to be shipped to Pendleton, Oregon for exhibition installation in late June 2027. If you can fully describe your idea without using the entire character limit, please do.

Sketch or photo

You may include a sketch or photo that helps us fully understand your ambitious idea. We understand that many great works take shape through the artistic process, so a finished concept is not required.

Max. file size: 10 MB.

File One(Required)

Please include five images to give us a feel for your current work.