
Cultivate Current Call to Artists

Local Artist Holiday Guide November 2023
The Cultivate Exhibitions Team invites makers, writers, artists of all mediums and experience levels to apply for our 2023 Local Artist Gift Guide. Any artist working within 100 miles of Grand Rapids is eligible for this work.
This free gift guide will be an annual guide to local artists' work in an effort to connect audiences directly to the artists. This guide will be printed like a magazine and distributed in hotels, tourism agencies, artist markets, restaurants, and more. It will also be available online, and all artist websites will be available.
The mission of this work is to support small businesses and to connect audiences to local artists. Think of it as an art catalog that you can reference during the holiday season, but also year-round. We want to share artists from every zip code and area to share the breadth of work and art that is in our city.
Image featured here is Son Visual
Timeline:
August 2, 2023: Call Opens
September 8, 2023: Call Closes
September 29, 2023: Artists will be notified
October 1-30: Full Design of Holiday Guide
Mid-November: Guide is Available for Public
Local, Regional, National
Recommended Calls to Artists
Updated list of regional calls to artists. Updated monthly.
Resources for visual artists in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Resources include grant opportunities for artists, fellowships, artist studios, vending and market opportunities, art fairs, and more. The mission of this resource guide is to serve and support artists in the West Michigan area with tools to elevate their careers.
You’ll never step into the same store twice. We pride ourselves in constantly rotating inventory to keep our space interesting and fresh. Can’t find a brand you love? Let us know and we’ll source them for you. Want to sell your own products in C&S? Fill out our vendor request form!
Currently between C&S and Oh Hello Paper and Gifts we have around 65 vendors that are all paid on 60/40 consignment. We currently are looking for artists to fill up our walls!
Application due date N/A.
EFA Project Space Program Exhibition Proposals
For the 2024-2025 Open Call theme, EFA Project Space is interested in exploring the notion of “Folklore” in its various forms and aspects. We are looking for exhibitions, community engagements, and public programming that celebrate personal narratives, memories, traditions, and ceremonies. We are interested in stories and experiences that vitalize roots and origins, in works and actions that are not filtered through a globalized lens, and that touch on raw materiality.
The selected candidates will be awarded an honorarium, production budget, materials budget, programming and logistical support to organize a six-week-long exhibition at EFA Project Space.
Applications due September 29th, 2023.
The 62nd Ann Arbor Film Festival (AAFF) Call for Entries is now open! The Ann Arbor Film Festival is open to experimental films as well as films that demonstrate a high regard for the moving image as an experimental art form, no matter the genre. Each year AAFF selects over 100 shorts and features for the awards competition portion of the festival.
Submissions continue through September 30, 2023. The 62nd AAFF will take place in person March 26 - 31, 2024 (online dates to be announced). Filmmakers may submit features or short films. AAFF considers feature films as those that filmmakers deem to be experimental with a runtime of 60 minutes or longer and short films to be films that the filmmaker deems to be experimental with a runtime less than 60 minutes.
Deadlines and fees:
Late Submissions: September 1-30, 2023 ($70 features | $60 shorts)
All accepted filmmakers will be paid to show their work thanks to AAFF’s Pay Artists initiative which started with the 59th Festival in March, 2021. Each year, three distinguished jurors award approximately $24,000 in cash and in-kind prizes, some of which are Oscar-qualifying.
Walmart Community Mural Program
Walmart Community Mural Program is a celebration of communities across America and an important part of a new or newly transformed facility. Inspired by the community and together with every store manager, each mural reflects the local diversity and cultural references. Every mural is a unique, original artwork. Walmart works with NOW Art, a public art agency, to curate artworks and engage artists across the country. Today, community murals are featured in hundreds of Walmart stores, and original artworks are unveiled weekly in newly transformed stores.
This opportunity is with NOW Art directly to be included in our pre-qualified directory of artists for mural commissions. To participate in this program and be selected we are considering artists who create compositions in the following styles: contemporary, street art, illustration, landscape and watercolor.
This will not require any onsite work. Artists will create the designs remotely and submit the work digitally in high-resolution format, and our organization prints and installs their work in the stores. The selected works will be significantly enlarged, so detail and an understanding of scale are key.
Compensation for the mural will be up to $800 - $1,000 per project. Artists must be able to create a render within a week. Artists of all ages, levels of experience, and talent are welcome. Inclusion in the directory does not guarantee a mural commission.
Applications due September 30th, 2023.
The Ann Metzger Memorial National All Media Exhibition
The Ann Metzger Memorial National Biennial Exhibition is an all-media, all-content, juried exhibition open to artists across the United States. Ann Metzger was a long-time member of the St. Louis Artists' Guild. Per her bequest a prize fund was established for cash awards to honor contemporary artists. For this exhibition, we seek artists working in various mediums and topics. We are proud to announce our juror is Molly Moog, curatorial assistant at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation.
Applications due October 14th, 2023.
Our Artist Market submission process is open to local, regional, and national artists. Accepted artist will be notified October 23, 2023. Please plan to drop off or mail artwork to us November 15-18 between 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. The market will run November 25, 2023 through February 25, 2024. Unsold art work must be picked up by March 2, 2024. Work priced between $5-$500 sells best in the market. The Winter Artist Market at Ox-Bow House will be open from Wednesday-Saturday 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Sunday 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m., and by appointment at 137 Center Street in Douglas, Michigan.
Application Fee: $30 USD
Applications due October 15th, 2023.
Brookline Arts Center Exhibition Program
Each year, the BAC presents eight to ten exhibitions between its two gallery spaces: The Annex Gallery (86 Monmouth Street) and The Beacon Street Gallery (1351 Beacon Street). Exhibitions are approximately two to three months in duration and typically take place in the following timeframes: January-March, April-June, July-September, and October-December. In addition to exhibiting their work, participating artists lead community engagement activities such as workshops and artist talks.
Submissions are encouraged from artists residing in the northeast United States as well as artists, residing anywhere, who have not exhibited significantly in the Boston-area. Artists may submit work individually or in groups (of multiple artists) and may submit work with or without a specific exhibition proposal. Work is accepted in all media and genres, including proposals for site-specific installations.
Artist Compensation: Approximately $1,500/exhibition
Applications due October 17th, 2023.
2025 Garrison Arts Center Gallery Exhibition Proposals
We accept applications for solo, two- and three-person, and small-curated group shows. Application is open to US residents 18 years old and older only. Artists are responsible for the cost of transport of artwork selected for exhibition and must be present at the opening reception.
Application Fee: $30.
Applications due December 31st, 2023.
Sixty Inches From Center Call for Pitches
Sixty welcomes writers and artists of all experience levels and backgrounds to pitch ideas for traditional and experimental arts writing as well as creative writing around topics and practices that are relevant to the cultural landscapes of the Midwest.
This includes but is not limited to dance/movement, performance art and drag, theater, and music/sound. If you are interested in pitching an idea to write about Performing Arts, keep in mind that your pitch does not have to be a review (although we do accept reviews). We encourage you to think about other types of writing as well, including but not limited to: interviews, experimental responses to performances, and conversations with those working in the field.
Application due date N/A.
The Carr Center Gallery 2023-2024 Exhibition Proposals
Located in the heart of Detroit's Cultural Center, The Gallery is a place where visitors will see art, learn about artists, and discover cultural practices that speak to or from black experience.
The Carr Center leverages the essence of the African American cultural experience to inspire, entertain, challenge, and educate. It is a place where all artists, across disciplines, and community come together. The Carr Center is devoted to the preservation, presentation, promotion and development of the African and African American cultural arts traditions within our multicultural community.
Application Fee: $20.
Applications due date N/A.
Avenue for the Arts - 106 Gallery Proposals
Avenue for the Arts is currently looking for artists for exhibitions in for 2023. A solo exhibiting artist or group of exhibiting artists are required to pay $100 or $200 respectively to use the gallery. Fees are waved for active college students. Artists keep 100% of gallery sales.
Proposals are accepted on an ongoing basis.
Would you like your artwork featured in a show flyer? We’re looking for artists to share their skills. Submit your artwork to be featured in our event marketing and promotions.
Application due date N/A.
Grand Rapids Art Museum Michigan Artist Series: Ongoing
GRAM welcomes submissions from artists for review. Prior to submitting your work we ask that you consider our current and past programming in order to determine whether your submission is appropriate to our mission.
Please note that we do not accept original works of art, nor will we be responsible for any original materials that are sent to us as part of the submission packet. Digital submissions are preferred, though you may also send printed materials, if necessary. Please include examples of your work or a link to your website or portfolio, as well as any other information you think would aid us in understanding your work or career.
Send submissions to Assistant Curator, Jennifer Wcisel at jwcisel@artmuseumgr.org. Please include “Michigan Artist Series submission” in the subject line of your email.
Contact
If you'd like to add, or edit, an opportunity on this art jobs in Grand Rapids page, please contact us at hello@cultivategrandrapids.org