HOME: States of Belonging Juried Exhibition of Contemporary Photo-Based Work

HOME: States of Belonging Juried Photo-Based Exhibition

Exhibition Dates: January 14th - March 28th, 2027

Call for Entry Dates: July 17th - October 12th, 2026

In partnership with Colorado Photographic Arts Center and Month of Photography

HOME: States of Belonging brings together contemporary photo-based artists whose work explores the idea of home as something personal and constantly changing. Rather than focusing on home as a single place, the exhibition looks at how it is shaped by identity, memory, movement, family, work, and community.

This juried exhibition hopes to includes a wide range of photographic practices, such as photography, video, collage, installation, and work that uses archives or alternative image-making processes. Some artists focus on specific places, while others explore emotional, imagined, or inherited ideas of home.

States of Belonging introduces the theme of HOME as something shaped by both personal experience and place.

HOME: States of Belonging

Juried Exhibition of Contemporary Photo-Based Work
Main Gallery
In partnership with Colorado Photographic Arts Center and Month of Photography

All programming will be held during March 2027 for Month of Photography 2027

HOME: States of Belonging brings together contemporary photo-based artists whose work explores the idea of home as something personal and constantly changing. Rather than focusing on home as a single place, the exhibition looks at how it is shaped by identity, memory, movement, family, work, and community.

This juried exhibition hopes to includes a wide range of photographic practices, such as photography, video, collage, installation, and work that uses archives or alternative image-making processes. Some artists focus on specific places, while others explore emotional, imagined, or inherited ideas of home. Together, the works show the many ways people define and experience home today.

States of Belonging introduces the theme of HOME as something shaped by both personal experience and place.
 

Artwork Requirements:

1. Submissions must utilize a form of lens-based media as their primary technique, but they may include other mixed media elements within the greater work only if video/photo materials are predominantly used. 

There are no minimum or maximum size limitations for submission. Installations are welcome as long as the work can fit within the gallery's 9-foot ceiling height. 

2. Open to all forms of photographic image-making in any process or technology, current or historical. Work must be your original creation, for example not inkjet prints that are reproductions of paintings. 

3. Final exhibition sizes must be specified, if the work is framed include that in the size.

4. Any artwork not conforming to the selected conditions set forth will be disqualified.

5. For specific questions regarding eligibility, please email  galleries@arvadacenter.org
 

Submission Guidelines: 

 1. Non-refundable entry fee of $35 for up to 3 pieces. Limited entrance fee scholarships are available for artists who are experiencing economic hardship, for artists who identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), and for artists who identify as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. Please email galleries@arvadacenter.org to request a scholarship.
2. Images may be JPG files only. New media files must fit requirements set by Call For Entry.
3. Crop images to exclude framing and background.
4. Images must represent the work exactly.

Delivery and Return of Accepted Work:

1. Shipped work should arrive no later than December 18, 2026. Ship work in sturdy, reusable crates or cartons. Work will be returned in the container and materials in which it arrived. Artists must provide a pre-paid return shipping label.
2. Artwork may be hand-delivered December 21 - 22, 9:30am - 4:30pm.
3. Arvada Center provides insurance for artworks while on premises.
4. Arvada Center is not responsible for damage or loss during transport.

Sales of Artwork:

1. If artwork is sold, artists will receive payment after the close of the exhibition.

2. Artworks may be for sale during the exhibition. Artists will receive 60% of sale proceeds. Arvada Center will retain 20% of sales, and the Colorado Photographic Arts Center will retain 20% of sales.

3. Artwork does not need to be for sale to be selected for the exhibition.

Agreement:

Submission to this competition constitutes an agreement on the part of the entrant to the conditions set forth in this prospectus. Submitting an application and application fee in no way guarantees acceptance into the exhibition.If selected, accepted artwork must remain on view for the entire duration of the exhibition and may not be removed early.  Arvada Center reserves the right to final curatorial, educational, and installation decisions. The Arvada Center may use your image(s) for marketing and catalog purposes, and will credit the artist in that case.

The Arvada Center reserves the right to all final curatorial, educational, and promotional decisions, and reserves the right not to exhibit any piece that is not faithfully represented in its application, arrives damaged, is not properly prepared for exhibition, or is deemed too fragile for effective display, or cannot remain on loan for the full exhibition period.

About the Arvada Center Galleries:

With a focus on featuring living Colorado artists and artists of the Western region, The Arvada Center Galleries host more than 12 art exhibitions each year across its three distinctive galleries spanning over 10,000 square feet of space. The galleries are free and open to the public seven days a week, keeping access to local and regional art available to all. Learn more at arvadacenter.org/galleries.

About the Colorado Photographic Arts Center:

Located in Denver’s Golden Triangle Creative District, CPAC hosts 7-10 high-quality exhibitions each year that showcase the finest examples of contemporary photography from local and national artists.  All of our exhibitions are free and open to the public. We offer classes and workshops year-round at affordable rates, taught by a faculty of established artists and industry professionals. We offer resources for artists, including a darkroom, digital lab, photobook library, and a Permanent Collection of more than 800 fine art prints. Finally, we organize more than 50 events each year to engage the broader Denver community. Learn more at https://cpacphoto.org/.

Jurors:

Samantha Johnston

Executive Director and Curator, Colorado Photographic Arts Center

Samantha Johnston serves as the Executive Director and Curator for Colorado Photographic Arts Center, a reviewer at Houston, FotoFest, Review Santa Fe, PhotoPlus New York, Medium, Filter, PhotoNola, and Month of Photography Denver, and supporter of the Society for Photographic Education. She received her BFA from Alfred University, an MFA from Lesley University College of Art and Design, and a certificate in Arts Development and Program Management from the University of Denver.

Collin Parson

Director of Galleries and Curator, Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities

Born and raised in Colorado, Collin Parson currently serves as the Director of Galleries and Curator for the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities in Arvada, Colorado, is a former member of the historic Pirate: Contemporary Art cooperative, and is an alumnus of RedLine’s artist residency program. An arts administrator, artist, curator, and designer, he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater Design and Technology with an emphasis in Lighting and Scene Design from the University of Colorado at Boulder and his Master in Arts in Visual Culture and Arts Administration from Regis University in Denver.

Olive Jarvis

Exhibitions Manage and Associate Curator, Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities

Olive is a Colorado-born curator whose work focuses on connecting art, history, and community through thoughtful exhibitions and inclusive storytelling. Through her work with the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, Coors Western Art Exhibit & Sale, and the Molly Brown House Museum, Olive has developed expertise in exhibition development, public engagement, and interpretive practice. Her work is informed by a commitment to accessibility, collaboration, and creating meaningful connections between artists and audiences.

Important Dates:

Call for Entry Opens Friday, July 17, 2026

Call for Entry deadline: Monday, October 12, 2026 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (late entries will not be considered)

Email notification by October 30, 2026

Hand-delivered artwork: December 17 - 18, 9:30am - 4:30pm

Shipped artwork deadline: December 18, 2026

Exhibit opens: Thursday, January 14, 2027

Opening Reception: Thursday, January 14, 2027 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., Free and open to the public

Last day of Exhibition: March 28, 2027

Work returned to artists via pickup or shipping: Week of March 29, 2027

Submission Guidelines: 

1. Non-refundable entry fee of $35 for up to 3 pieces. Limited entrance fee scholarships are available for artists who are experiencing economic hardship, for artists who identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), and for artists who identify as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. Please email galleries@arvadacenter.org to request a scholarship.
2. Images may be JPG files only. New media files must fit requirements set by Call For Entry.
3. Crop images to exclude framing and background.
4. Images must represent the work exactly.

Eligibility Criteria and Terms of Submission - Please read thoroughly before beginning your application.

Eligibility:

1. All lens-based media are eligible, including but not limited to images made by film, scanner, screen capture, digital camera, and any means of mobile photography. If work using AI is submitted, please be sure to note the use of AI. Please email galleries@arvadacenter.org if you are unsure if you qualify.
2. Open to artists over age 18.
3. All applications must be completed online through CaFE; no paper or emailed applications will be considered.

Artwork Requirements:

1. Submissions must utilize a form of lens-based media as their primary technique, but they may include other mixed media elements within the greater work only if video/photo materials are predominantly used. 

There are no minimum or maximum size limitations for submission. Installations are welcome as long as the work can fit within the gallery's 9-foot ceiling height. 

2. Open to all forms of photographic image-making in any process or technology, current or historical. Work must be your original creation, for example not inkjet prints that are reproductions of paintings. 

3. Final exhibition sizes must be specified, if the work is framed include that in the size.

4. Any artwork not conforming to the selected conditions set forth will be disqualified.

5. For specific questions regarding eligibility, please email  galleries@arvadacenter.org