Call for Submissions
As the first major project of US-China Better Relations Coalition, a newly formed student organization aimed to connect students globally, we are organizing an online exhibition on the concept of “home.” It is co-curated by Miranda Curtis, Wellesley College ’19 and Yanni Li Wellesley College ’20. The exhibition is open for submissions from students and recent graduates—you don’t have to be an artist or an art major to submit your work! We encourage individuals of all backgrounds to submit work.
Exhibition title:
Home is …?
Exhibition concept:
This online exhibition explores the various connotations of “home”—be it a place, a group of people, an object, an image, an idea, a memory, etc. We will take an intimate look at what “home” means to students with different backgrounds, in a time when the news and social media can present uniform or binary perspectives that abstract individuality.
Home has become an increasingly unstable term. Global migration and displacement have rendered the idea of “home” more fluid than ever. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, many international students are not able to return home, but rather have to stay in “temporary” homes in foreign countries. By simply existing, international students and third culture kids constitute a challenge to the traditional conceptualization of “home,” as they mature and enter adulthood in vastly different environments. For students sheltering with family, the realities of life under lockdown may be initiating a different kind of crisis of home—perhaps a reckoning that they have outgrown their childhood dynamics, or that what was once home has become a kind of prison. Students with complicated familial relationships may be forced to confront the pain and conflict that “homes” can host.
The exhibition attempts to show that “home” is no longer a stable place, and that the identities associated with the transforming concept of the home are undergoing change as well.
Submission criteria
Eligibility: students or recent graduates
Subject: your work(s) should be related to your understanding of “home,” in its broadest sense
Formats: we accept all forms that can be put online - visual art (paintings, drawings, photographs, sculpture, installation), short writings, poems, music, etc. You can submit multiple works; please specify if they belong to a series that should be considered as a whole.
Deadline for submissions: July 30th, 11:59 pm EST
How to submit: email your work(s), a short artist statement and bio to betterrelationsorg@gmail.com.
Formatting: Please upload written or visual work(s) as either JPEG or PDF files. Please try to photograph visual works in the best lighting and highest resolution possible, against a neutral backdrop. For video submissions, MP4 and H.264 formats are preferred; for audio submissions, MP3 and AAC formats are preferred. All uploaded files should include the artist’s name and work title in the file name, unless you wish to remain anonymous. If you are submitting a series, please include the artist’s name, series title, work title, and the work’s order in the series.
Ex: John Smith, Untitled
Ex (series): John Smith, Untitled Series, Untitled (1)
In your submission email, please include the following information:
● Your name and preferred gender pronouns (ex.: she/her, he/him, they/them, etc.)
● Your school and graduating year
● Where you are from
● Title of your work(s)
● Year made
● Medium (in the case of physical works)
● Dimensions (in the case of physical works)
If you have never written an artist statement before, this is a useful guide: https://www.pixpa.com/blog/how-to-write-an-artist-statement. Generally, an artist statement should be brief (100-150 words), introducing the artwork and providing the audience with some context. Artist statements help guide viewers when looking at your work, but shouldn’t be too in depth. An example of a student artist statement can be found here.
Bios should be concise (50-150 words), and include basic information about yourself. If you don’t know what to write, we suggest you include your background, what kind of art you make/mediums you use, and themes/passions/academic subjects that inspired you.
Please also let us know if you have special requests. We will respond by the end of July to inform you if your work has been selected. For any questions, please email us at betterrelationsorg@gmail.com.
