NJ Arts Annual FY27: Hank Willis Thomas Selects

The New Jersey Arts Annual is a unique series of exhibitions highlighting the State’s visual and performing artists. In partnership with major museums around the state, one exhibition takes place each year, alternating between host institutions. These exhibitions are open to any artist currently living or working in New Jersey. The Arts Annual series is sponsored by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment of the Arts. Since 1984, the New Jersey State Arts Council has co-sponsored the prestigious Annual in keeping with its mission to encourage and foster public interest in the arts, promote freedom of expression in the arts, and to facilitate the inclusion of art in every building in New Jersey. To learn more about the Council, please visit www.artscouncil.nj.gov.   

The New Jersey Arts Annual is a unique series of exhibitions highlighting the State’s visual and performing artists. In partnership with major museums around the state, one exhibition takes place each year, alternating between host institutions. These exhibitions are open to any artist currently living or working in New Jersey. The Arts Annual series is sponsored by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment of the Arts. Since 1984, the New Jersey State Arts Council has co-sponsored the prestigious Annual in keeping with its mission to encourage and foster public interest in the arts, promote freedom of expression in the arts, and to facilitate the inclusion of art in every building in New Jersey. To learn more about the Council, please visit www.artscouncil.nj.gov.   

Hank Willis Thomas Selects the New Jersey Arts Annual  

From September 2 to December 23, 2026, the Zimmerli will host the New Jersey Arts Annual, a signature project that showcases a wide range of contemporary artists living or working within the state. This exhibition marks the Zimmerli's inaugural New Jersey Arts Annual. 

We are honored to announce that artist Hank Willis Thomas (b. 1976; Plainfield, NJ) will serve as juror. Thomas’s practice, which engages questions of history, power, and collective memory, is grounded in thoughtful dialogue. In that spirit, this open call welcomes artists at all stages of their careers, with particular interest in work that expands current conversations, and in makers who have not yet received sustained visibility. Rather than organizing the exhibition around a prescribed theme, this edition—Hank Willis Thomas Selects the NJ Arts Annual—will present work across generations and disciplines, catalyzing critical thought and creating space for mindful looking. By providing this crucial platform for local talent, the Zimmerli aims to bring added recognition to New Jersey-based artists and foster a regional dialogue on identity and legacy. 

This Annual will be presented in tandem with Hank Willis Thomas: LOVERULES: From the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation, on view at the Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers from September 2 to December 20, 2026. LOVERULES asks us to see and challenge systems of inequality while affirming our shared humanity to shape a better future. 

About Hank Willis Thomas: Artist and Curator 

A central figure in the 2026 season is Hank Willis Thomas (b. 1976), a Plainfield, NJ native and celebrated conceptual artist whose practice engages questions of history, power, and collective memory. Thomas will serve as the juror and guest curator for the New Jersey Arts Annual, lending his expertise to ensure a dynamic selection of both emerging and established artists. His involvement connects a figure of national prominence to the local art scene, bridging the gap between New Jersey’s homegrown talent and the broader contemporary art world.  

The Annual will be presented in tandem with a major survey of his own work, Hank Willis Thomas: LOVERULES—From the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation. This exhibition features 90 works covering 20 years of his practice and represents his first major exhibition hosted in his home state. By pairing LOVERULES with the Arts Annual, the Zimmerli affirms its commitment to challenging systems of inequality while celebrating our shared humanity to shape a better future. 

The Zimmerli Art Museum 

Founded in 1966, the Zimmerli Art Museum (ZAM) is a prominent unit of Rutgers University and a premier cultural asset for the New Brunswick campus, functioning as a “teaching laboratory” for experiential learning and civic engagement. As one of the nation’s largest public university museums, it bridges a major research institution and its surrounding community, ensuring art remains an accessible catalyst for dialogue and wellness.  

Central to its mission is the stewardship of a permanent collection of more than 75,000 objects. By preserving and presenting histories ranging from American and European masterworks and the Soviet Nonconformist Art collection to diverse contemporary voices, the Zimmerli serves as both a global research destination and a local sanctuary for cultural reflection.  

The museum organizes eight to ten exhibitions each year, offers more than 300 interdisciplinary educational programs annually, and provides free public access to its galleries.  

The Zimmerli foregrounds innovation in the development of content and interpretation by engaging new artists, material practices, modes of collaboration, and ways of working during the planning, realization, and programmatic activation of exhibitions. In this way, the museum functions as a hub for community engagement, inviting the public to connect with art and each other through visual storytelling and academic rigor.  

The exhibition program seeks to highlight art and artists from various backgrounds to reflect the values of mutual respect and social responsibility.  Artistic quality, relevance to our diverse audiences, and adherence to the museum’s mission are at the top of the criteria that guide decisions and direction. That includes featuring artists who have been historically underrecognized, including artists of color, women artists, those with ties to New Jersey, and artists who push our educational mission forward.  

Artists must submit the following for consideration: 

Images, video or audio files may all be submitted. Compilation images are acceptable if more than one image of a piece of work is needed to show details.  

Total Number of Work Samples Allowed: 8
 
MEDIA REQUIREMENTS for each work submitted: 
Images-Minimum: 4, Maximum: 6
Audio-Minimum: 0, Maximum: 2
Video-Minimum: 0, Maximum: 2 
Total Media-Minimum: 4, Maximum: 8

Work Sample Specifications:
 
All work samples must be submitted via a CaFÉ application. Submissions sent via email will not be accepted.

• Images must be in JPEG or JPG format. 

• File Dimensions: 1,200 pixels or greater on the longest side. 

• File Size: Under 5 MB 

• Video must be in MOV, MP4, WMV, 3GP, AVI, ASF, MPG, M2T, MKV, or M2TS format. File Size: Under 100 MB. Linked media from YouTube, Vimeo, etc. is not accepted. 

• Audio must be in AIFF, WAV, XMF, or MP3 format. File Size: Under 10 MB. 

Your submission must include: 

• A current résumé 

• Brief artist biography (3rd person, max 250 words)

• An artist’s statement (1st person, max 150 words)

• Complete and accurate dimensions (in inches). Height x Width x Depth; of the work(s) submitted. 

NOTE: For works selected for the exhibition, artists must be prepared to submit high resolution images to be used in the Arts Annual catalogue, on the Museum website and publications, programs, and/or for press purposes. The Museum reserves the right to edit the artist’s statement and bio with the artist’s approval. 

The artist bio should be written in third person and no more than 250 words. 

The artist statement should be written in first person and no more than 150 words. 

Projected Process and Timeline:

Deadline for artist submissions: May 1

Artist submissions review period: May 4 - May 22

Notifications to artists sent out by May 29 

Shipment of works beginning July 20  

Exhibition opens: September 2, 2026 

Exhibition closes: December 23, 2026 

All dates other than exhibition dates are subject to changes when deemed necessary. 

You must be at least 18 years of age and an artist living or working in the State of New Jersey. You will be asked to provide evidence of your residency or work status in the State.