How often have you spent time choosing just the right painting to submit for jurying in hopes of gaining entrance to a particular show or competition?  Perhaps you've even painted a piece to fit a specific theme of an upcoming show.  I know I have.  You make your submission with hope and anticipation, taking care to photograph the piece in just the right light, size the image in accordance with the instructions in the call for entries, sometimes having to learn new computer skills just to do it, and then you wait for the jury's decision.  And when it finally comes,........"We regret that your entry will not be included....blah, blah, blah" AGAIN!   So, there it is, REJECTION.  I think it's only human to be disappointed.  Maybe you spend a few moments wondering if you're ever going to break through and get into that gallery, that show, that competition.  Again, perfectly normal.  But, what SHOULD one do with rejection?  First, I think it's very important to understand that there are any number of possible reasons your painting didn't get accepted.  It could be that there were already several other similar works that had been juried in before the judge(s) got to yours.  Bad luck.  Possibly, they didn't feel your work conveyed the show's theme strongly enough.   It could even be that your painting wasn't the size they were looking for to fill out the show.  These and many other possibilities fall under the heading "Not Much You Can Do About It".  And the point here is, the fact that you were rejected does not necessarily mean the work wasn't good.  Which, leads me to a very important point; there is another possible reason for rejection that we, as painters, must always consider if we are to continue to improve: Maybe my work was rejected because it simply didn't meet the standard of excellence required.  The good news here is that this is something we certainly CAN do something about.  To that end, when I receive rejection letters I take time to study the piece in question and ask myself, "Is there any part of the work that I could've executed better?"  Sometimes, the answer is, "no".  That's when I tell myself it was probably due to some judge's disdain for yellow ochre.  Or, their bias against paintings of rocks.  But, if upon critical examination of my work, I find some area that hasn't been painted as well as I possibly could have, I must take responsibility for that.  Further, I am presented an opportunity to fix the trouble spot thereby, improving the work and my skill level.  At that point, okay, I didn't get into that show but, I used the rejection to improve as a painter.  And isn't that what I'm supposed to be doing, after all?  Look, I've had plenty of paintings result in rejection letters from one art organization or another.  Heck, what do you think inspired me to write this blog?  But, I think it's important to find ways to turn those negatives into positives whenever I can.  And if my failed efforts result in helping someone else learn how to effectively deal with rejection well, I will have turned the negative around.  Oh, by the way, several of my paintings that weren't accepted to various shows have since sold.  So, be honest with yourself, always strive to improve, and take a dip in frustration and disappointment from time to time if you must.  But, don't wallow in it!  You have work to do.