Design by Dani Wallace
CALL FOR ENTRIES: Artwork created between March 2020 - August 2020 during social isolation. Artists can submit up to 3 artworks to mwinters@sojournchurch.com by Sunday, August 9th for consideration. (details below)
Artists whose work is selected will be informed by Thursday, August 13th, and all selected pieces must be ready to hang and delivered to Sojourn Arts, 1303 S. Shelby St., Louisville, KY, 40203, by Monday, August 24th.
About:
Made in the Belly of the Whale is a show curated around art made during a time of social isolation, a time of hiddenness, as people stayed home, schools went virtual, and businesses closed doors. The title comes from Dan Albergotti’s poem “Things to Do in the Belly of the Whale”:
Measure the walls. Count the ribs. Notch the long days.
Look up for blue sky through the spout. Make small fires
with the broken hulls of fishing boats. Practice smoke signals.
Call old friends, and listen for echoes of distant voices.
Organize your calendar. Dream of the beach. Look each way
for the dim glow of light. Work on your reports. Review
each of your life’s ten million choices. Endure moments
of self-loathing. Find the evidence of those before you.
Destroy it. Try to be very quiet, and listen for the sound
of gears and moving water. Listen for the sound of your heart.
Be thankful that you are here, swallowed with all hope,
where you can rest and wait. Be nostalgic. Think of all
the things you did and could have done. Remember
treading water in the center of the still night sea, your toes
pointing again and again down, down into the black depths.
To his list we add ‘make art.’ Creating in response to the revelations, the sufferings, the uncertainties, the joys, the stillness.
In Matthew 12:40, Jesus says, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
Three days of nothing from their Lord - what must have the disciples been thinking, feeling, hiding in an upper room? Yet during that time more was accomplished by the Son of Man than they could yet perceive.
Work unseen until Jesus returned to His disciples and shared with them, unfolding the scriptures before them on the road to Emmaus, preparing a meal with them on the beach. The greatest creative act—Redemption—given for the whole world.
We want to share the artwork made by artists in the belly of the whale, and as we continue in this season of social distancing, we invite you to also reflect on what the Lord has done, look for what He is doing, and long for what He will do.
To Participate:
Deadline to enter: August 9th at midnight. Late entries will not be considered.
Juror: Annie Lee-Zimerle is an interdisciplinary artist with an emphasis in printmaking, painting, and drawing. She is an Assistant Professor & Program Director of the Kate Cheney Chappell '83 Center for Book Arts at University of Southern Maine.
Email mwinters@sojournchurch.com with image attachments for up to 3 artworks. For each artwork, in the body of the email please provide title, size, media used. Please make your image filename the title of the artwork (ex: artworktitle.jpg).
Only wall-hung artworks will be considered.
There is no entry fee. The juror will select three artists to receive a cash prize of $100 each. Sales inquiries will be encouraged and redirected to the artists.
Out-of-town artists are welcome to submit, but a pre-paid return shipping label must be sent with any accepted artwork shipped to our location. We will not be covering any shipping expenses for this exhibit. We also can not be responsible for any damages that may occur during shipping.
Artists whose work is selected will be informed by Thursday, August 13th, and all selected pieces must be ready to hang and delivered to Sojourn Arts, 1303 S. Shelby St., Louisville, KY, 40203, by Monday, August 24th.