The Space Between Is What Remains

The Space Between Is What Remains is a national juried exhibition at Rolo Gallery, a new contemporary art gallery in Denver's Art District on Santa Fe (rologallery.art). We're looking for work that holds something — a mark, a quality of light, a feeling that doesn't leave. Abstract, figurative, or anywhere between. All media welcome including painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, sculpture, mixed media, fiber, ceramics, works on paper, and book arts.  $25 entry fee for 1–3 works. The show opens September 3, 2026 and runs through October 11, with a Third Friday reception September 19. Work will be on view during two First Friday Art Walks on Denver's Santa Fe Drive, drawing up to 15,000 visitors each. Bring us what stays with you.

The Space Between Is What Remains is a national juried exhibition at Rolo Gallery, a new contemporary art gallery in Denver's Art District on Santa Fe. We're looking for work that holds something — a mark, a quality of light, a feeling that doesn't leave. Abstract, figurative, or anywhere between. All media welcome including painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, sculpture, mixed media, fiber, ceramics, works on paper, and book arts. The show opens September 3, 2026 and runs through October 11, with a Third Friday reception September 19. Work will be on view during two First Friday Art Walks on Denver's Santa Fe Drive, drawing up to 15,000 visitors each. Bring us what stays with you.Something always stays. A mark on a surface. A quality of light. The feeling a place leaves in the body long after you've left it.

The Space Between Is What Remains asks what endures — and lets each artist answer that question in their own way. There is no single interpretation we're looking for. Your work doesn't need to explain itself or announce its connection to the theme. If it resonates with you, that's enough. 

We are interested in all the ways artists understand permanence — what the hand leaves behind, what time does to a surface, what it means for a made thing to outlast the moment of its making.

Bring us what stays with you.

ABSTRACT WORK IS WELCOME HERE

You don't need a narrative or a recognizable subject — the theme lives just as naturally in how a work is made as in what it depicts. A surface that holds depth. A mark that records a moment. A form that makes space feel like something. Color that stays in the room after you've looked away. If your work does any of these things, or more, it has something to say here.

Figurative and representational work is equally welcome. The show will bring all approaches into conversation.

ABOUT ROLO GALLERY & THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Rolo Gallery is a new contemporary art gallery at 910 Santa Fe Drive in Denver's Art District on Santa Fe — one of the most storied creative corridors in the American West, and one of the highest-density gallery neighborhoods in the country. What began as an industrial corridor became, by the 1980s, a destination for artists — and one of the first Certified Creative Districts in Colorado in 2012.

The Space Between Is What Remains will be on view during two First Friday Art Walks (September 4 and October 2, drawing up to 15,000 visitors each), the Third Friday reception on September 19, and the Sundays on Santa Fe gallery crawl on September 27.

ACCEPTED MEDIA

Painting · Drawing · Photography · Printmaking · Sculpture · Mixed media · Fiber / textile · Ceramics · Works on paper · Book arts

ARTIST STATEMENT

• An artist statement is optional — if you’d like to share a few words about your work and its connection to the theme, you’re welcome to (200 words or fewer)

SIZE LIMITS

• 2D work: maximum 40 × 60 inches
• 3D work: maximum 24 × 24 × 84 inches
• No video, film, digital, sound, or installation work for this exhibition

PRESENTATION REQUIREMENTS

• All 2D work must be professionally wired and ready to hang — no sawtooth hangers
• 3D work must arrive stable, self-supporting, and installation-ready
• Do not pack work in packing peanuts — use foam, bubble wrap, or custom packaging only
• Work arriving not gallery-ready may be excluded from the exhibition

IMAGE REQUIREMENTS

• JPEG format only
• Minimum 1,200 px on shortest side, maximum 8 MB per file

ENTRY FEES

ELIGIBILITY

• Artists 18 years and older residing in the United States
• All career stages — no exhibition history required
• Original work in any medium
• Maximum 5 works per artist
• Rolo Gallery is committed to an inclusive exhibition culture. Artists of all backgrounds, identities, abilities, and career stages are warmly welcomed. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, or national origin.