The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art is soliciting North Carolina residents who are making great "art," whether they consider themselves artists or not, for a national touring exhibition.
SECCA, along with four other American art institutions in the United States, will present People's Biennial, circulated by Independent Curators International. The show will consist of works by five artists from each of the museum's participating states and will travel the nation from 2010 to 2012. The exhibition organizers are looking for remarkable, under-appreciated work by anyone and everyone, especially people who may not be considered part of the art world, ranging from a child who makes a dazzling science fair project to a person knitting fantastic clothing.
Artists are not excluded from proposing their work, but the participant pool is open and inclusive, welcoming artisans, "non-artists" and unusual creators to visit Winston-Salem and share their work.
The deadline for recommending work is Friday, April 30. Send photographs and a description of the work along with contact information to SECCA-PB@ncdcr.gov. You can nominate yourself. Please keep images to 72 dpi, sized to no more than 5 inches on the largest side. If any work you have recommended is selected you will be credited for your contribution. The people chosen for the exhibition will receive a national showcase for their creative talents and two free copies of the catalogue that is being produced for the show.
The curators of People's Biennial will review all entries and finalists will be invited to present their work in Winston-Salem Thursday, May 20, through Saturday, May 22, at a location to be announced. There is no entry fee but finalists will need to cover the costs of their travel and accommodations.
In addition to SECCA, the institutions presenting this exhibition are: The Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (Portland, Ore.); The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (Scottsdale, Ariz.); The Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery at Haverford College (Haverford, Pa.); and The Dahl Arts Center (Rapid City, S.D.).
The work will be selected by Harrell Fletcher, a Portland, Ore., artist and professor and Jens Hoffmann, director and curator of the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts in San Francisco.
For more information, please contact SECCA Program Assistant Endia Beal at (336) 397-2109 or endia.beal@ncdcr.gov.
The exhibition, tour and catalogue are made possible, in part, by a grant from the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation; the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; ICI Benefactors Agnes Gund, Gerrit and Sydie Lansing, Jo Carole Lauder, and Barbara and John Robinson; and the ICI Partners.
Employees of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the N.C. Arts Council, the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County and SECCA are not eligible to participate in People's Biennial.
