HMVC Gallery presents [Realms of Magic]

Magic and fantasy in art reveal inner worlds through Surrealism, Magic Realism, and Imaginative Realism. These styles blend everyday life with the subconscious and fantastical, creating lifelike yet impossible realms. The “Realms of Magic” online exhibition invites artists exploring wonder, symbolism, and the extraordinary within the familiar.

We welcome artworks from all mediums of visual art, except AI-created art.

AWARDS:

All Artists participating in the online group show will be featured on our Website and Virtual Gallery. All artists will be awarded an HMVC Gallery New York certificate of participation. A video clip of “Realms of Magic” featuring all participating artists’ artworks will be screened on a jumbotron billboard in New York City’s famous Times Square later in October.

Best of show winner: $150
Second place winner: $100
Third place winner: Online Solo Show
All Artworks: Times Square Jumbotron Billboard (when possible)

Magic and fantasy in fine art bridge the gap between human imagination and visual communication, transforming the artist´s inner worlds into tangible experiences.

Magic Realism introduces subtle enchantment into ordinary settings, allowing dream like or supernatural elements to appear without disrupting the logic of reality.

Surrealism, shaped by artists like Leonora Carrington and Salvador Dalí, dives deep into the subconscious. Their works dissolve rational boundaries, creating psychological landscapes where symbols mutate, narratives bend, and the inner self becomes a terrain of strange beauty. Surrealism reminds us that fantasy is not always escapism, but a direct expression of the mind’s hidden architecture.

Contemporary artists working within Imaginative Realism merge classical technique with fantastical subject matter. They use realistic rendering, light, anatomy and perspective, to depict creatures, realms, and phenomena that could never exist in the physical world. This movement demonstrates how fantasy gains power when grounded in skillful craftsmanship, making the impossible feel convincingly alive.

Our October online group art exhibition “Realms of Magic” invites artists to submit artworks that step beyond the familiar and into spaces where wonder, symbolism, and impossibility coexist with the everyday.

We welcome artworks from all mediums of visual art, except AI-created art, and video/film.

★ Digital entries must be received by September 28th, 2026 before 11:59 pm Eastern Standard Time.

★ Notification of acceptance will be sent by email by September 30th.

★ The show will premiere on October1st and end on October 31st.

AWARDS:

All Artists participating in the online group show will be featured on our Website and Virtual Gallery. All artists will be awarded an HMVC Gallery New York certificate of participation. A video clip of “Realms of Magic” featuring all participating artists’ artworks will be screened on a jumbotron billboard in New York City’s famous Times Square later in October.

We are delighted to announce that we will be giving cash prizes to two talented artists!

Best of show winner: $150
Second place winner: $100
Third place winner: Online Solo Show
All Artworks: Times Square Jumbotron Billboard (when possible)

The winners of Best of Show and Second Place need to have a working PayPal account to receive their prize money. If the winner of the cash prize fails to provide HMVC Gallery New York with a working PayPal account, the winner will be forfeited and HMVC will be entitled to select another winner. The prize will be sent to the winner within 14 days of responding to HMVC.

The Third Place winner will have their own online Solo Show at HMVC Gallery New York and the show will run for a month. The Solo Show winner will also receive a HMVC Gallery New York solo certificate recognizing their achievement.

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

To be considered for the online group show artists must provide the jurors with high-quality images of their artwork as befitting the theme, an Artist Bio, and an Artist Statement. Artists can submit up to 20 artworks for the jurors’ consideration. In the end, one artwork from each selected artist will be included in the group show. If your application is lacking or if your work is misrepresented, we reserve the right to refuse to feature your artwork in the show.

All properly prepared entries (refer to submission form) will be viewed and judged by the jurors, Heini Mika and Vincent Chang. The decision of the jurors is final.
We accept the following Image Formats: JPG, JPEG, PNG, GIF, SVG, and WEBP. Dimensions: Min: 1200 pixels or Max: 2560 pixels on the longest side. We may have to readjust your dimensions after entry to fit the limitations. Image Size: under 2 MB.
At the moment we welcome artworks from all mediums of visual art, except video/film.

MEDIA & MARKETING:

By submitting images, the artist agrees that the images are the artist’s own work and they own all rights to the images. If the artist’s work gets accepted, they grant HMVC Gallery New York the right to use their image on our website, social media, and online to help promote our online exhibitions. Full credit and copyright will remain with the artist. We will promote the show and the artists in our Newsletter and individually on our Instagram page @hmvcgallery.

APPLICATION FEE:

The Submission fee is $40 for the first entry and $10 for additional entries and it is non-refundable and does not guarantee acceptance.
** Be sure to select all images you wish to submit at the bottom of the application before you check out.

We welcome artworks from all mediums of visual art, except video/film.

File definitions.

File Type: JPEG or JPG only.
File Dimensions: 1,200 pixels or greater on the longest side.
File Size: Under 5 MB.
Color Profile: sRGB

We welcome all artists and their submissions at HMVC Gallery New York.