Calligraphers and artists from around the world are invited to participate in the National Postal Museum's seventh annual Graceful Envelope Contest, which is being conducted by the Washington (DC) Calligraphers Guild this year. Although the National Postal Museum will not be continuing its sponsorship of the contest and exhibition, the Museum's Education Department has arranged for the Contest to carry on with the assistance of calligraphy guilds in the United States. The Washington Calligraphers Guild has agreed to conduct the 2001 Graceful Envelope Contest and to display the winning envelopes in a public exhibition space and on the Web. Approximately 50 winning entries will be selected. The winning entries will be exhibited July 20-August 25, 2001 at the Strathmore Arts Center in North Bethesda, Maryland as part of the Washington Calligraphers Guild's 25th anniversary show; admission is free. Contest winners will also be exhibited on the Internet.

Criteria for Selection:

This year, we invite participants to illustrate either of these themes for this year's contest:
*The Washington Calligraphers Guild's 25th anniversary; or
*Celebrating 200 years of Washington, D.C. as the Nation's Capital.

Entries must be addressed using hand-executed calligraphy or fine lettering. Creative use of calligraphy/lettering and art toward the overall design of the envelope is encouraged. Inventive relationships between the postage stamp and the envelope design are also encouraged. Entries may be constructed of paper, lightweight cardboard, fabric, yarn, ribbon, beads, etc. The use of original, hand-made or hand-designed, rubber stamps and wrapping papers is permitted if well-integrated into the overall design.

Not permitted: The use of commercial images, clip-art, stickers, magazines, newspapers or other commercial materials is not permitted. The use of scanned or computer-enhanced or photocopied images/calligraphy/lettering is not permitted.

Contest Rules:

1. Your entry must be postmarked no later than Saturday, March 31, 2001.
2. Your entry must be sealed, processed and delivered through the United States Postal Service to the Washington Calligraphers Guild as First Class Mail.
3. Your entry will not be opened. Legibly print your name and complete address on the back of each envelope.
4. Your entry must be no smaller than (3 1/2" X 5 1/2") and no larger than (5 1/2" x 7 1/2").
5. The envelope depth must not exceed 1/4 inch (to be displayable).
6. Each contestant may submit one entry. If more than one entry is submitted, only the first entry received will be judged.
7. The contest is limited to adults (age 18 and over).
8. Your entry may not be wrapped in a separate envelope or in any protective covering.
9. The stamp on your entry must be canceled, either by hand or otherwise.
10. Your entry must be an envelope. Postcard entries will be disqualified.

Contest rules and regulations can be viewed on these web sites:
www.si.edu/postal/education/graceenvelope/gracefuledstart.html
www.calligraphersguild.org

The Washington Calligraphers Guild will not acknowledge receipt of entries. However, all contestants will be notified in May 2001 as to the final status of their entry. All entries become the property of the Washington Calligraphers Guild for use in future publications or exhibitions and will not be returned. Non-winning entries will not be displayed.

Address your entry to:

The Graceful Envelope Contest
Washington Calligraphers Guild
Box 3688
Merrifield, VA 22116-3688

Entries must be postmarked by March 31, 2001 and delivered by the U.S. Postal Service.

Frequently Asked Questions about
the Graceful Envelope Contest

Q. What is the Graceful Envelope Contest?
A. The Graceful Envelope Contest solicits hand-lettered and uniquely illustrated envelopes in an international outreach program that celebrates the role of letter-writing in binding people together, acknowledges the postal employees who deliver mail with skill and care, and promotes the art of calligraphy. Created in 1995 by the Smithsonian Institution's National Postal Museum, the 2001 contest is being sponsored by the Washington (DC) Calligraphers Guild.

Q. How do I learn more about the contest?
A. You may access last year's winners in a virtual exhibit at www.si.edu/postal/graceful2000/exhibit.html, and you may obtain further information about the Washington Calligraphers Guild at www.calligraphersguild.org.

Q. How do I enter?
A. There is no entry fee. Each participant may enter only one envelope, not to exceed 7 ½ inches wide x 5 ½ inches high by 1/4 inch deep, which must be postmarked by March 31, 2001 and delivered by the U.S. Postal Service to this address:
The Graceful Envelope Contest
Washington Calligraphers Guild
Box 3688
Merrifield, VA 22116-3688

Q. How is the contest judged?
A. Impartial judges from the postal, calligraphic and arts communities will select approximately 50 envelopes as winners. Among the criteria the judges will consider are: interpretation of the contest theme; effective use of color and design; artistic hand lettering (computerized type is not acceptable); and the overall creative transformation of an ordinary envelope into a work of art. Only the front of the envelope will be judged.

Q. How will I know if I've won?
A. Winners will be notified by mail in May; no prizes are awarded. The winning envelopes will be exhibited July 20-August 25, 2001 at the Strathmore Arts Center in North Bethesda, Maryland as part of the Washington Calligraphers Guild's 25th anniversary show. Contest winners will also be exhibited on the Internet.

Q. Will I get my envelope back?
A. All entries become the property of the Washington Calligraphers Guild and will not be returned.