Root Division: Open Call for Artists, Centering the Margin – Due January 17, 2012

12/29/2011

OPEN CALL FOR ARTISTS:
Centering the Margin 

Curated by: Anthony Ryan

Deadline for Submission: Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Exhibition Dates: March 7-24, 2012

Root Division invites artists working in all genres to submit work for an exhibition entitled Centering the Margin.

Centering the Margin is an artist-curated project focusing on artwork that concerns itself with spaces, events, and artifacts that exist just outside of our field of vision and attention. If our contemporary existence is marked by a focus on spectacle and constant stimulation, then Centering the Margin is a show that documents those things that fall outside this focus. These are things that require a change of speed or shift in focus to perceive them.

This show hopes to draw connections between artists concerned with margins, edges and interstitial spaces through diverse approaches and varied platforms of concept, representation and materials.

Works considered for the show could be:

  • pictorial works that represent spaces and moments that are glimpsed fleetingly if at all
  • process-based works that employ materials that exist solely as vessels for goods or products, or are artifacts of technologies of display and production
  • time based works that document forces or phenomena that are barely perceptible or so common as to escape notice
*These are only a few examples, the curator will entertain any works that serve to flesh out the show’s overarching concept through a broad range of materials, media and approaches and set up a dialog between works that provokes an examination of this concept on the part of viewers of the exhibition.This call for entries is meant to complete a show that currently includes the work of 7 artists including the curator, Anthony Ryan.A total of 15 to 18 artists will be represented in the exhibition. Final selection of works will occur AFTER the Call for Entries process is complete and all artists will be given equal consideration for representation in the final exhibition to the best of our ability.

Previously selected artists:
Michael J Ryan http://www.michaeljryan.com/MichaelJRyan.html
Michael Hall http://michaelhallpaintings.com/home.html
Sarah Newton http://www.sarahmnewton.com/
Anthony Ryan http://anthonydanielryan.com/home.html
Robin Johnston http://www.robin-johnston.com/
Devon Tsuno http://www.devontsuno.com/
Brian Caraway http://www.briancaraway.com

Checklist of application materials:

  • 4 images (jpegs: 72 dpi, 600×800 pixels max) (Digital only please; Sorry, no slides) Video should be submitted as a still and as a link to a web-hosted video viewer AND/OR 3-minute video clip on CD/DVD for Mac
  • Artist resume (1-2 pages max)
  • Statement outlining the relevance of submitted work to curatorial topic (250 word max)
  • SASE (for return of materials if desired)
  • $10 check/money order made payable to Root Division, also by e-payment here: http://rootdivision.org/Call_Centering_the_Margin.html

ROOT DIVISION

3175 17th Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
415.863.7668
www.rootdivision.org

ABOUT ROOT DIVISION:
Root Division is an arts and arts education non-profit located in the Mission District of San Francisco. Root Division’s mission is to improve appreciation and access to the visual arts by connecting personal inspiration and community participation. We provide subsidized studio space to working artists in exchange for their service in creating shared learning opportunities for the community. Artists develop creatively and professionally by teaching art to underserved youth, leading adult education classes, and producing exhibitions that showcase local emerging artwork. By combining multiple opportunities for creative exchange, Root Division cultivates an artistic ecosystem that enriches life throughout the Bay Area.

Root Division is supported in part by grants from Grants for the Arts: SF Hotel Tax Fund & Voluntary Arts Contribution Fund, The San Francisco Foundation, Walter & Elise Haas Fund, and the Potrero Nuevo Fund. The Second Saturday Exhibition Series is sponsored by the Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation, the San Francisco Arts Commission through a Cultural Equity Grant/Organizational Project Grant, the Fleishhacker Foundation, and the Zellerbach Family Foundation.

For further information regarding events and/or press materials, please do not hesitate to contact Amy Cancelmo at 415.863.7668 or events@rootdivision.org.