As the world burns to a crisp and everyone seems to have abandoned themselves to the pursuit of luxury, polarizing ideologies, and the satisfaction of base desires, Equity Gallery invites you to stop and smell the roses. Imagine if you will a paradisiacal relief, a higher place of virtuous delight—an eternity yet tainted.

Alluring and beloved by humankind throughout the ages, flowers are the perfect starting point for a meditative and mutable journey colored by powerful sensations–be that joy, hope or sublime longing. It follows that flowers have assumed the role of timeless motifs, a mainstay subject for artists seeking to depict fleeting beauty and the concurrent mythological and religious undertow that temporality and fragility engender. As a prevalent and prolific genre, one can trace art historical developments, and their ascendant motives and expressions, with flower art –from works that embody enlightenment philosophies to those seeking to capture the scintillating light of a summer day.

Perhaps most importantly artwork of florals and plant life, powerfully seductive in its display of decorative effects and archaic symbolism, has come to signify prosperity, rebirth, healing, and love itself. Il Paradiso: Walled Gardens, Pastorals and the Salvation of Nature will showcase artworks with a focus on flowers, botanicals, and untamed wilderness. It will function as a repudiation, commentary, and a reprieve from the follies of our current anthropocene age. Our world and our time, as did the world and its times before us, needs a bit of heaven and a lot more love. Flower art might help us get there.

Submission Guidelines:

1. Submissions may comprise of up to three artworks per entry, along with a bio and/or CV. They must be submitted in digital format- preferably in either a word doc or PDF format with images of the artworks either imbedded in the document or attached to the email- to info@nyartistsequity.org. There is a $30 processing fee ($20 for NYAEA members and Full Time BFA/MFA Students.)* Please include complete caption information, noting the title, size, media, and the date of production of each individual work. Submissions may be of paintings, drawings, mixed media works, prints, photographs, or sculpture. All submitted artwork must not exceed 48 inches in any dimension (including frame).

2. Entries will be juried by a panel comprising fellow practitioners and allied professionals including Peter Gynd, artist and director of the Lesley Heller Gallery; Margaret Krug, artist, Parsons School of Design associate professor and author of “An Artist’s Handbook: Materials and Techniques;” Peter Trippi, Editor of Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine; and Jimmy Wright, artist and president of the Pastel Society of America.

3. Awards will include (cash and prizes TBA):
First Place
Second Place
Third Place
Honorable Mention

4. Entries must include current contact information ( email, home or cell phone number, and home address.) Please fill that out information in the form below.

5. Deadline for entries is April 29th. Artists chosen for the exhibition will be notified by or around May 15th

6. We invite national and international artists to apply. However, the shipping of work is the sole responsibility of the artist. All artists are responsible for the shipping of their works to and from the gallery.

7. Local drop off and pick up dates, along with other important details and updates, will be provided to artists whose works are chosen for the exhibition.

The Membership Bundle offer has been extended until April 15th! For a limited time only, applicants will get the opportunity for a discounted New York Artists Equity membership along with submission to the open call.

For more information, find the link below:
http://www.nyartistsequity.org/call-for-entries