T-shirt contest

Rules and Guidelines

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General Rules and Guidelines

• The contest 2023 will be open for submissions until March 8th, 2023 using this submission form. Participants are required to be part of the SDS community, meaning you have SDS or someone you know has SDS. Patients, siblings, relatives, friends, teachers, healthcare providers, researchers, etc are all welcome to participate.

• Each artist is allowed up to three different submissions. Revisions don't count toward the total. However, an artist may only win for one piece.

• All submissions are required to complete an artist profile, including contact information, age, SDS connection, and the title of the artwork using the submission form above.

• All participants must acknowledge they have read the Contest Artwork Release Form. The winner must sign a release form. 

• Participants are able to submit on behalf of others in the event that someone is unable to submit themselves. Entries submitted on behalf of others must credit the artist. The prize (up to 5 t-shirts for the same household) will go directly to the artist, with the exception of an artist who is under 18 years old.

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Contest Timeline

Please note the 2023 T-shirt Design Contest for Glocal SDS Awareness Week schedule is subject to change.

• February 25 – March 8th, 2023: The contest opens for submissions. Use this submission form.

• March 9th – March 15th, 2023: Public voting period begins. VOTE HERE!

• March 16th, 2023: The winner will be announced.

• March 17 – March 27th, 2023: T-shirts will be available to order in the SDS Alliance Bonfire store, to be shipped in time for SDS Awareness Week in April.

 

The winner of the public vote will receive up to 5 free shirts for their household, courtesy of the SDS Alliance. Partnering SDS nonprofits will also be able to distribute or sell T-shirts if they choose.

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Artwork Title & Artist Statement

Entries may include a 200-word or less artist statement, interpreting and describing the art from the artist’s point of view. The artist statement can include anything, but judges are particularly looking for artist statements that connect art to living with SDS, what Global SDS Awareness week means to you, and the importance of rare disease and SDS advocacy.

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File Guidelines

• This is a visual art contest. Artists may use any medium but must submit a photo of the artwork. 

• Files must be uploaded at a resolution of 2MB or higher. High-resolution files are required in order to allow the artwork to be beautifully translated when printed on T-shirts, apparel, and other merchandise and media.

• All files must be uploaded as a JPEG or PNG. (If you have a vector graphic, we would welcome that if you win).

• Photos must be cropped to remove background items that are not part of the artwork, such as a frame or table.

 

Voting

• If we receive 20 or fewer submissions, all will be presented for public voting. If we receive more than 20 submissions, the SDS Alliance Board of Directors will select the top 20 and present them for public voting.

• Winners will be notified right after the voting period ends.

• Voting will be conducted via a form, here. 

 

Code of Conduct

The spirit of the contest is about sharing stories, community, and advocacy through art. Poor sportsmanship, cheating, copyright violations, or submitting artwork that does not belong to the artist is subject to immediate disqualification.

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Contest Artwork Release 

You will be asked to consent to this when you submit the submission form

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By submitting an entry (“Artwork”) to this Contest (“Contest”), hosted by the Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome Alliance (“SDS Alliance”), you, as a Contest participant (“Artist”), accept for yourself or, if applicable, as the parent/guardian of an Artist, the following terms:

• I grant SDS Alliance the non-exclusive rights to use my Artwork in digital or hard copy format for advertising, promotional, exhibiting, and or/any other purposes SDS Alliance deems appropriate.

• If I win, I also grant SDS Alliance the right to assign, sub-license, transfer, and grant the same rights to other nonprofit organizations and Contest sponsors. This may include other registered nonprofits that serve the SDS community if they partner with the SDS Alliance in this Contest.

• I understand that submitting to the Contest will not affect my own rights to, and ownership of, my Artwork.

• I certify that my Artwork is my own.  No other individual or parties own or have obtained copyright to my Artwork.  The permissions being granted do not violate any prior agreements I have made with anyone else.

• I agree that my Artwork, in SDS Alliance’s sole discretion, may be posted online at the Contest website and/or any other website as determined by SDS Alliance, for visitors to the website(s) and social media channels to view.

• I acknowledge that I have read the Contest Artwork Release Form, and if selected as the Contest winner, will be required to sign and submit a copy of said form.

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How to Submit Art

Please use this submission form above.

 

Prizes

• The winner of the public vote will receive up to 5 free T-shirts with the winning design.

• Bragging rights.

• Highlighting their work on the SDS Alliance website and social media channels.

• Promotion of their work through partnering SDS nonprofit organizations.

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FAQs

1. Is the contest open to international artists?
   Yes!
   The SDS Alliance is a US based 501(3) nonprofit serving the global SDS community. We have launched Global SDS Awareness week to facilitate SDS awareness and advocacy globally.

2. I am unable to upload my photo, it says the picture file is too big or too small.
   We do require the artist to submit a minimum of 2 MB or higher. This allows the image to be beautifully translated when displayed. If you need assistance with changing your file size, here are some tips:

   • Avoid downloading your artwork from Facebook or Facebook Messenger. This tends to shrink the image. 

   • Avoid uploading your artwork into the Cloud; your art may shrink in size to save space.

   • If you have a smartphone and can take a photo of your artwork, they tend to take photos between 3MB and 9MB.  

   • There are a few online programs and platforms that may be able to help resize your image. Canva, Adobe Photoshop, or GIMP (a free alternative to Photoshop) are both good options. Instructions for resizing a photo in GIMP can be found here. Instructions for resizing a photo in Canva can be found here.

   • If you have tried all the steps above and are still having difficulties, please email your file to connect@SDSAlliance.org and we can try to resize your image.

3. Can I submit a sculpture, song, poem, etc.?
   We are grateful for your interest in sharing your art with us and recognize that art includes a wide range of mediums, including yours. For this particular contest, we are looking specifically for visual art and artists are able to submit anything that can be photographed, including paintings, drawings, sketches, photography, and graphic design.  If you are interested in getting involved with the SDS Alliance and sharing your voice through poetry, music, or other art forms, please email us at connect@SDSAlliance.org.

4. I already submitted an art piece, but I want to make edits. Can I do so?
   Absolutely! Simply submit your new version using the submission form above. We will use your latest version unless you request otherwise via email to connect@SDSAlliance.org. You are welcome to make as many edits as you want up until the deadline.

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Any additional question(s)? Email connect@SDSAlliance.org