{"id":203,"date":"2023-03-05T15:06:15","date_gmt":"2023-03-05T15:06:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/?page_id=203"},"modified":"2026-03-29T14:48:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T14:48:10","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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CDA – Certified Decorative Artist<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MDA – Master Decorative Artist

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The Certification Program is one of the most challenging and exciting programs, providing an opportunity for applicants to demonstrate their very best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, there are two levels of certification.  The Accredited Decorative Painter (ADP)<\/em><\/strong> level was discontinued in 2023, although the degree is still recognized for those who achieved it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • The first\/entry level is that of CERTIFIED DECORATIVE ARTIST (CDA)<\/em><\/strong>.   <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The second\/advanced level is that of MASTER DECORATIVE ARTIST (MDA)<\/em><\/strong>. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    The applicant can begin with Certified Decorative Artist level. The applicant will need to complete the Certified Decorative Artist level prior to moving onto the Master Decorative Artist level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The applicant must pay the required fee and submit one piece of work for judging. The applicant is given a choice of painting either<\/em><\/strong> a still life OR<\/em><\/strong> a stroke design.  If submitting in watercolor, colored pencil or pastel, the applicant may only submit in the still life category.  ALL stroke designs MUST be painted with a brush. The CDA applicant may enter only one design in any judging year, and may not submit both a still life and a stroke entry in the same year.  MDA applicants may enter one or all 3 designs in any one judging year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Applicant Requirements<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    1.<\/strong>  Read and abide by all information included in the Certification requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    2. <\/strong> Pay any applicable fees online on the Certification Website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    3. <\/strong> Observe all deadlines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    4. <\/strong>\u00a0By entering, applicants consent that all qualifying boards submitted for judging may be photographed for education, display and publication at the Committee’s discretion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    5.<\/strong>  All boards must be completed entirely by the applicant.  Discussion, assistance and\/or guidance via telephone, social media or in person, is strictly prohibited.  Pictures of current boards must not be posted on social media prior to being judged. Boards must not be a copy of a similar board, or any other work of art. All entries must be kept confidential.  Infractions of any of the above may result in disqualification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    6.<\/strong>  Failure to comply with any instructions, requirements or guidelines contained in the instructions may result in disqualification or a reduction in score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A passing score is 75%. All entries are automatically reviewed by the entire judging panel after initial scoring. Judges expect a higher level of proficiency for MDA level than CDA. Each applicant receive a written critique for each piece submitted indicating areas to study that will aid in their next submission. Free conferences with a judge are available after the judging process to discuss the board or answer questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    CDA – Certified Decorative Artist MDA – Master Decorative Artist The Certification Program is one of the most challenging and exciting programs, providing an opportunity for applicants to demonstrate their very best. Currently, there...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-203","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/203","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=203"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/203\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":713,"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/203\/revisions\/713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/decorativepaintersacademy.com\/certification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}