Kingdom Arts and Sciences (KAS) is the premier Arts event in Ansteorra. It is where the highest caliber of artistry and research is displayed and where the highest level of feedback is given by Laurels and subject matter experts.
Kingdom Arts and Sciences is a unique opportunity to compete in 4 categories: static, performance, research paper, and experimental archeology. Each person who scores in the designated top percentile will receive a token of excellence. Though you will truly compete against your own excellence, winners will be declared in each category.
Royal Artisan
The Crown may or may not audition and choose the Royal Artisan from the competition. The Royal Artisan may not have the highest score if chosen that day. Entrants for the Gulf Wars arts tournament may or may not be chosen that day, and those may also be chosen regardless of score. These are both at the complete discretion of the Crown.
Gulf Wars Arts Artisans
Entrants for the Gulf Wars arts tournament may or may not be chosen that day by the crown. Entrants may also be chosen regardless of the score. These are both at the complete discretion of the crown and should be in consultation with the Coronet and Heirs.
Rules for Entry into the Kingdom Arts and Sciences Competition
- Preregistration—All entrants must preregister before the registration deadline. If you see a list of entrants posted and you are not on that list, please contact the Kingdom MOAS immediately. Also, let your local MOAS know if you are new and need assistance with your first entry.
- Follow Policy – You must adhere to the items on the Policies and Code of Conduct page. Any violation of these policies may disqualify your entry.
- Once Per Category – You may only enter a single item per category: academic, static, or performance for a maximum of three entries. All entries must have documentation. If your entry has multiple pieces (for example, a Renaissance dress with a hat, hose, and ruff), it can be considered one entry, and all pieces must be in your documentation. It is difficult to be successful in more than two categories. Please keep that in mind. If multiple entries are brought to the competition, you will be asked to remove one. Otherwise, the Kingdom Minister, in consultation with the judges, will decide as to which single piece has the chance for the highest score and select that piece. This will not be subject to appeal.
- Double Entry in Performance and Static Categories – If you have a performance of an original piece, you may enter the same item in both performance and static entries as long as you only enter once in each category. You may to provide separate or supplemental documentation.
- Double Entry in Performance and Academic Categories – If you have an academic work that you would also like to perform, you may enter the same item in both performance and academic categories as long as you only enter once in each category. You will need separate documentation.
- Multi-entrant Projects – You may enter a multi-person group project. Each entrant may only enter once per category and will not be allowed to enter separately. This can be a single piece where an entrant did one part, and another did another (For example, one person did calligraphy, and another did the illumination). This can also be a project where two people work on an entry (For example, an ensemble of actors in performance or a woodworking project done with another artist equally). Since pilgrim tokens are handmade each year, only one token of excellence will be given to the team unless we have extra tokens that year.
- Combined Projects—You can also enter one piece that two entrants worked on (E.g., a dress made by one, beading and embroidery by another). This will require separate documentation for each entrant.
- Finished Entry – All items must be complete and cannot be a work in process. Likewise, please ensure your entry looks finished (Examples: marker not washed out of embroidery, loose threads everywhere, grout all over tiles, research paper in four fonts, etc.) It is not a requirement, but it is guaranteed to improve your artistry score. Incomplete items are welcome at Laurel’s Prize or can be DISPLAY ONLY to receive populace comments. This does not make you an entrant in the competition, but it is good for new artists to get feedback. This is dependent on available space on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Table Displays—Table displays are highly encouraged for all artisans. The display itself is not a judged component, but it can make your project more memorable. This also includes research papers and performance. Please don’t overdo it. Artists are typically given a 3’ table space, basically half of a 6’ table. You may ask for more space for larger entries, but if extra space is taken up with extra decoration, you will be asked to cut back.
- Piece Entered Previously – There is no rule that your piece has not been shown before, but it cannot be shown multiple times in KAS unless it is in a different category (For example, a poem was entered in 2017, but you decided to perform it in 2022.) If your judge has seen this all over the kingdom multiple times, it may leave a bad impression. If items are pulled from the competition and put on display, you can resubmit them for the next KAS. If your project is scored, you cannot enter that piece into KAS again.
- Check Your Category – We will contact you if your item is entered in the wrong category or if it was known before the competition. We may ask you to move your entry to another category if it does not meet the requirements. We want everyone to succeed and have a good eye towards what will get you the best feedback and scores. If you do not allow a change of category, know that you may be unhappy with your score and unable to appeal. Please review the requirements above the judging sheets for clarity.
- Tell Us What To Judge—You will need to designate what to judge on your entry for static and performance (e.g., judge the embroidery and not the pouch it is on).
- Meet the Deadlines – There is a deadline for entry and submission of all documentation approximately two weeks before the event to allow for review by your judges and to make sure we have subject matter experts. You must make the submission deadline. If you cannot meet the documentation deadline for any reason, please contact the Kingdom MOAS to ask for an extension. We are flexible and will work with you and your judges to achieve the best outcome. We work to get everyone who requested an extension in the competition. Though not everyone was scored, feedback was given on the submission. You will be allowed to bring some errata to the event if needed.
- Day of vs. Prior to Event Judging – Any physically judged items must be present on the day of the event. This can be sent by a third party; you do not need to be personally at the event for your entry to be scored. Performance can be by video or in person. Academic works have the option for additional visuals in their works, but can be judged before the event and over video.
- Meet With Your Judge – After scoring and recording, you can meet your judges. This will allow you to receive your judges’ feedback on your next entry. This is completely optional, and your answer will NOT affect your scoring. You will be asked if you want to participate when signing up. However, you can change your mind at any time before the event. Judges likewise have an option to opt in or out of meeting artists. If you are absent, we will ask your judge to email you or set up a call to help you with your next steps. If nothing else, you will meet another person who loves your art.
- Academic Scoring – Research papers will generally be judged remotely before the competition. Scores will be provided at or after the event, depending on whether you are in attendance. Research papers are NOT “extra” documentation for a static item. They are stand-alone entries unless you enter them twice in different categories. The requirements for research papers are very specific and have a rubric against which they are scored. If you are interested in submitting a research paper, please see the judging rubric to ensure you follow the guidelines. As far as style is concerned, we will require you to hold to a published style ONLY for citations. We do want your paper to be readable. You can lay it out like an article, provide it double-spaced, or use all the parts of a published style guide. We just want it to be readable. There should be NO deduction if you attempted to hold to a style guide and missed something, as long as it is neat and readable.
- Academic and Performance Displays – You are welcome to request table space to display your paper and any additional visuals to enhance that work. Let us know at signup, as this may change who judges your work, so they can see the visual. However, these physical objects are NOT considered part of the paper and will not be judged on their own construction and materials. This may or may not affect the final score. An editor is highly recommended before submission.
- Remote and Live Performance Entries—Performance documentation needs to be submitted by the entry deadline before the competition. The entry may be performed live at the event, or a video can be sent with your documentation. You also have the option to do both, but the live performance will take precedence and will be the one scored. The video will only be considered if you are unable to be present at the event.
- Ask for Accommodations – We have a process for accommodations for anyone differently abled. Please email accomodations@moas.ansteorra.org or contact your regional or Kingdom DEI officer, and they will contact the A&S accommodations deputy. We respect your privacy and will not ask what your issue is, but please come up with an idea of what might work to accommodate your needs. For example, we had a blind entrant and a gentle who was functionally illiterate. They were scored first and then provided feedback at their table. We also had an entrant with mobility needs that we accommodated with table placement.
- Food Safety – Food entries must follow all of the food safety policy rules (posted separately at the front of the webpage ), and can sign up for a judging slot to ensure the entry is at its peak. Judges always have the right to refuse to consume anything they deem unsafe, which cannot be appealed.
- Documentation Style—Please refer to the policy on the front of the website, but no published document form is preferred, and you will not be penalized for using APA over Turabian, for example. Chicago Elements of Style has become popular among academics in history if you don’t know what to choose. This only applies to the works cited. We do not expect you to hold to a whole style guide for your documentation, just the works cited format.
- Appeals—Any score appeal must be made no later than two weeks after the event. Again, food entries that were not consumed will not be eligible for an appeal.
- Stay in Period – Please keep your item before 1600. Some allowances will be made for items that may be out of period but can be documented to period. (Examples: visuals of music published in 1610 but have a documentable reference in another source before 1600; another is a dress from 1602, but the fashion was known to have not changed since 1590). Any other item outside the period will be evaluated with documentation by a subject matter expert before being disqualified.
- We Have the Whole World – There is no area of the world that is out of bounds as long as it is within the time period boundary of 1600. See the judging policy on the front of the website or contact the Kingdom MOAS for questions.
- Non-Judges Must Leave the Judging Area – If you are in the competition, you may not be in the area when the competition is being judged. Accommodations entries may be present as part of their accommodations, but efforts will be taken to isolate this from the other entries. Gentles, who must be present with a judge for their safety or medical reasons, will be accommodated as needed. After the judging is complete, there will be an opportunity to view all the entries.
- Shadow Judging – All shadow judges need to be escorted by a Laurel or assigned to a project. This applies to apprentices as well as non-apprenticed artists. If you have an entry in the competition, you will not be allowed to be in the display area containing your entry until after scoring is complete, unless you are an apprentice or formal student being escorted by your laurel.
- Have Fun—If participating is not fun, don’t stress. There is no requirement in Ansteorra to compete in KAS. Please contact the Kingdom MOAS if you have concerns or ideas to make the competition serve all our artists. The goal is to compete against your own excellence and find new ways to grow in your art. While this venue is not for everyone, we can always improve.