NUMBERS: A Call for Works About, By, or Featuring Numbers

About the Open Call

We live by numbers. We count the days until a child is born, and the days since. We mark time in birthdays, anniversaries, and retirements. We measure progress in grades, salaries, “likes,” years on the job, and steps taken or miles run. Numbers shape how we understand ourselves and the world—our distance traveled, our age, our debts, our hopes. Numbers are also a language. They describe not only what is tangible but also what lies beyond immediate observation—weather patterns, the speed of light, the pull of gravity, the scale of galaxies. Like letters and type, they carry formal beauty in their shapes and arrangements. Writing the notation for a perfect sphere is so much simpler than drawing one, and yet both actions “mean” the same concept. Calculations and measurements may be factual, but they are not neutral. What and how we measure, and for what purposes, is a matter personal, cultural, maybe poetic. Numbers can be symbols, patterns, rhythms, and aesthetic forms in their own right. They promise precision, but also invite interpretation. Manifest's selection process involves a complex two-part system. This exhibit will be juried by an anonymous several member panel of professional and academic advisors with a broad range of expertise relative to art and design. The jury will then pass along their recommendations to the exhibit curator who will make the final selections from the jury-approved pool. Manifest produces a high quality hard-cover publication documenting each entire season of exhibits, artists, and works shown. Exhibiting Artists will have the option of purchasing one copy of the MEA for the season in which their work is exhibited at half price; All solo exhibitors receive a copy of the MEA for free. All work accepted for the exhibition must arrive ready to install. Works not gallery-ready, or not exhibiting good craftsmanship, may be omitted from the exhibit. Shipped works must be sent in an easily reusable container/packaging with return shipping prepaid. Artists are responsible for all shipping costs to and from the gallery. Works will be insured while on gallery premises against theft, vandalism, damage caused by gallery patrons or staff. Insurance does not cover damage caused during shipping or by failure of the work itself. Artworks are not required to be for sale. Manifest Gallery will retain a commission of 30% of the sale price on all artwork sold during the exhibition. Artists set the sale price on the entry form.

What is Offered

Each participating exhibitor will receive a $50 cash honorarium. $9,000 in Grand Jury Awards will be distributed, with $1,000 awarded to one work during each of nine exhibition periods throughout the 22nd season. Exhibiting artists have the option to purchase one copy of the season's annual publication (MEA) at half price. Solo exhibitors receive a copy of the MEA for free.

Requirements

Open to everyone internationally. Entries must represent original works that address the broad theme of 'NUMBERS' (numbers as both measurement and metaphor, structure and symbol). Open to all traditional and non-traditional genre and media. There are no size restrictions on submissions other than what can fit in Manifest's spaces, on walls, and through doors. No requirements on the timeframe when submitted works must have been made. All accepted work must arrive ready to install, exhibiting professional-level presentation and craftsmanship. Work differing significantly from entry images or suffering from poor presentation will be disqualified. For video/interactive work, online links must be directly viewable without login/password.

How to Apply

Complete the online entry form linked on the opportunity page. Pay the entry fee ($45 for up to three entries, $5 per additional entry) by U.S. check or money order payable to MANIFEST, or by credit card via PayPal using the link provided after form submission. Upload digital images/files for consideration to the project Dropbox (link provided after entry form submission and in email confirmation). All entry files must be named with artist's last name_first name_entry number (e.g., Jones_Mike_1.jpg). Detail images must include 'detail' in the filename (e.g., Jones_Mike_1detail1.jpg). Images should be in HIGH QUALITY JPEG format, no smaller than 1000 pixels in any direction (about 13”) and 72 dpi. For video or interactive submissions, provide a link to a viewable online copy (e.g., Youtube, Vimeo, Dropbox) on the entry form in the VIEWING LINK section, and submit a single representative JPEG image to the Dropbox. Links must not require a login, password, or membership to view and must remain valid and active through notification of jury results. Do not include extra information in the image upload unless specifically requested.