EMERGING PHOTOGRAPHERS SHOWCASE 2021 - now closed for submissions

Exposure welcomes diverse and innovative submissions from Alberta-based emerging photographers and visual artists who incorporate, celebrate or challenge the photographic medium within their practice. Submissions will be reviewed by our juror, award selection committees and the Exposure team, and selected works will be shown at Contemporary Calgary as part of the 2021 Exposure Photography Festival in Calgary, Alberta.

We are delighted to announce the Exposure Photography Festival 2021 Emerging Photographers Showcase juror is Ryan Doherty, Chief Curator of Contemporary Calgary. Doherty received his MA from the Centre for Curatorial Studies at Bard College in New York (2007) and his undergraduate degree at the University of Lethbridge in 1997. He worked at the University of Lethbridge Art Gallery curating exhibitions from their extensive collections and at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery as both Director and Curator through 2018. Doherty’s curatorial practice explores the construction of meaning in the information age, social practice and community engagement, and notions of maintenance, adaptability and institutional reflection. Doherty welcomes an array of submissions for this open themed exhibition.

The submission fee for ten images is $35 CAD - a portfolio of 10 images is highly recommended. Additional images may be submitted for $5 each, and photographers/artists may submit up to fifteen images total. The deadline for submissions is October 15, 2020 at 6pm MST.

ABOUT EXPOSURE

The annual Exposure Photography Festival presents exhibitions that showcase photographic work by internationally renowned practitioners, alongside emerging and established talent from Alberta. Last year the festival received over 850,000 visits to its exhibitions from Exposure audience members in Calgary, Canada, the US, Europe and beyond! Exposure provides an exciting, innovative meeting place for photographers and art lovers to connect with one another, along with curators and photography professionals from around the world. The festival brings together people of all ages to celebrate Alberta’s rich photography scene and thriving creative communities. 

Testimonials

“The Exposure Photography Festival continues to be an important forum for the exchange of ideas and inspiration and a prestigious showcase for emerging talent.”  George Webber, Photographer

“Exposure's respect for photography and those artists resonates throughout the city.  The programming is exceptional and inspiring. If you are a supporter of photography and the arts, mark this festival on your to-do list and make your way to Calgary.”  Dave Shelley, Co-Founder of Photoville

EXPOSURE OPPORTUNITIES 

Submitting artists will:

• Have the opportunity to be featured on the Exposure Photography Festival curated Instagram account. 

• Gain visibility with the 2020 juror and Exposure team.

Accepted artists will:

• Exhibit their work in the Exposure Festival’s Emerging Photographers Showcase. 

• Be invited to become involved with the exhibition’s related programming.

• Have their name and website link featured on the Exposure website, reaching audiences worldwide. 

• Be featured in the Exposure Photography Festival 2021 printed guide. 

• Have the opportunity to win one of the Exposure Awards, as listed below.

• Receive a bursary of $300 CAD to assist with production of their work for exhibition. We would like to thank Calgary Arts Development for supporting this new initiative for the 2021 Emerging Photographer Showcase exhibitors. 

EXPOSURE AWARDS

Successful applicants will have the opportunity to be selected for one of the following awards:

Exposure 2021 Emerging Photographer of the Year Award (First Prize) 
Recipient will be awarded a solo show at Exposure Photography Festival 2022.

Exposure Festival’s Emerging Photographers Showcase Award
The recipient will be awarded a free portfolio review day and the opportunity to take over the @exposurephotofestival Instagram as a week-long online residency.

GRAIN (UK) Emerging Photographer Award
The recipient will be awarded an online portfolio review with GRAIN and will be offered support and advice on how to develop their professional practice. GRAIN delivers activities in collaboration with national and international partners to support artists and develop opportunities for audiences and participants.

Shutter Hub Emerging Photographer Award
The recipient will be awarded a Shutter Hub Membership, 1-to-1 mentorship with Director Karen Harvey, and a feature on the Shutter Hub website. Shutter Hub is a photography organisation providing opportunities, support and networking for creative photographers worldwide. A Shutter Hub Membership provides photographers with exhibition, portfolio review, publicity and commissioning opportunities, awards, mentorships and continued support.  

TREX Southwest Travelling Exhibition Award
The recipient will be awarded a two-year travelling exhibition contract with TREX Southwest. The exhibition tour will begin in September of 2021 and will run until September of 2023. The TREX program, funded by the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, strives to ensure every Albertan is provided with an opportunity to enjoy fully developed exhibitions in schools, libraries, healthcare centres, and smaller rural institutions and galleries throughout the province.

The TREX SW Travelling Exhibition Award will also provide the following opportunities:

• Facilitation of (paid) artist talks or workshops with K-12 audiences, developing professional skills in these areas through mentorship with the TREX SW Curator, Ashley Slemming.

• Inclusion in a digital and printed exhibition catalogue solely focusing on the artist's work and the themes their work explores. The catalogue is distributed to all hosting venues during the exhibition tour (at least 20 venues).

• Inclusion on TREX SW social media channels through artist-features with full artistic credits included.

BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR WORK

• Download and review ‘The Fine Print’ pdf  to familiarize yourself with the terms and conditions of the call for submissions. 

• Select a series of photographs that best represents your practice, and prepare a written statement about your work. Your submitted pieces should show a thematically connected body of work. We strongly recommend that you submit one project-based body of work per entry. You may enter more than one body of work. If you choose to do so, you must pay the submission fee for each series you submit.

• Images can be shot in any format, using any camera, film or digital. We welcome diverse submissions from photographers and visual artists who incorporate, celebrate or challenge the photographic medium within their practice; this includes photo collage and moving image. If you wish to submit a 3D work or are unsure if your work is eligible for this open call, please email Exposure’s Coordinator, Bethany Kane, at Beth@ExposurePhotoFest.com.

ELIGIBILITY 

• To qualify for the Emerging Photographers Showcase you must reside in Alberta.

• Emerging Artists are defined as those, of any age, who are in the early years of launching a professional career.

TIMELINE

Call for Submissions goes live: August 27, 2020
Open Call Deadline: October 15, 2020
Notification of Results: October 23, 2020
Print Deadline: December 11, 2020
Exhibition Installation: January 2021
Exhibition Open: February 2021     

SUCCESSFUL SUBMISSIONS

• Prints can be displayed in a variety of ways including framed, pinned, projected, hung with magnets or printed on vinyl. Within your submission details, please tell us how you intend your work to be displayed and its preferred size.

• One to three works from your submission, depending on their intended installation and size, will be selected for the exhibition at Contemporary Calgary.

• Applicants selected for the Emerging Photographers Showcase will receive a bursary of $300 CAD to assist with production of their work for exhibition. 

COVID-19 AWARENESS

Please note that if COVID-19 affects the 2021 festival the International Open Call will be presented online and/or, pending successful grant funding, in an outdoor or other public exhibition presented in the City of Calgary.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that the Exposure Photography Festival takes place on the traditional Treaty 7 territory of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani as well as the Îyâxe Nakoda and Tsuut’ina nations. We acknowledge that this territory is home to the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region 3 within the historical Northwest Métis homeland. We would also like to acknowledge that Exposure Photography Festival is situated on land adjacent to where the Bow River meets the Elbow River, and that the traditional Blackfoot name of this place is “Moh’kins’tsis”, which we now call the City of Calgary. Finally, we honour and acknowledge all Nations, indigenous and non, who live, work and play in Moh’kins’tsis and help steward this land and honour and celebrate this territory.