Exhibition Dates: May 16 – June 29, 2025

Submission Deadline: December 6, 2024

Guest Jurors: Rajiv Menon and Roseline Nevling

This group exhibition will center the experiences of artists with ties to Colorado who self-identify as a member of the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community, exploring how their stories of migration, settlement, and identity from the global "East" to the global "West" have both embraced and challenged the legacy of the American West.  Artists are encouraged to submit works of any medium for consideration for exhibition within the McMahon Gallery housed at The Dairy Arts Center, Boulder, CO. 
 

This exhibition will be juried by Rajiv Menon, founder of Rajiv Menon Contemporary in Los Angeles, and Roseline Michael Neveling, founder of Neveling Arts+Culture in New York City. Working together with the Curator of Visual Arts at The Dairy, this exhibition will be on view in May through June 2025 (full dates and details below).

About the theme: 
Inspired by the phrase “Go West, young man,” this exhibition reinterprets the 19th-century rallying cry that shaped the westward expansion of the United States. The phrase carries a dual legacy—on one hand, symbolizing the pursuit of new opportunities and the ideals of Manifest Destiny, and on the other, the stark and violent realities of settler colonialism. 

The title Go West! naturally evokes the American romance with the frontier. But the title also resonates with multiple dimensions of the AAPI experience: migration, expansion, ambition, and an evolving sense of identity. We welcome a broad interpretation of the theme through the lens of diasporic experience 

As guest juror Rajiv Menon explains, “‘Go West’ encapsulates the ongoing search for new lands and ways of living that have defined so many lives. For Asian Americans with roots in the 'East,' the West is not merely a destination but a concept that is being continuously reinterpreted and reimagined.”

We look forward to showcasing the rich artistic expressions of AAPI artists and their interconnected communities, fostering conversations and connections around these important multicultural issues and their ties to the cultural landscape of Colorado. 

We invite artists to submit works that explore themes of migration, identity, belonging, and transformation. All mediums will be accepted including but not limited to: painting, drawing, collage, sculpture, performance, new media, photography, textiles, and installation. Please see below for further details.

About the Jury:

Rajiv Menon

Rajiv Menon is a gallerist based in Los Angeles. Rajiv earned his PhD from New York University, where he studied global media and visual culture, with additional coursework from The Sotheby’s Institute. An avid collector of South Asian Art himself, Rajiv has made it his mission to expand the art collecting audience within diasporic communities and to promote new, emerging voices in this space. In May of 2024, Rajiv was honored by the City of Los Angeles for his contributions to the city's art scene.

Roseline Nevling

Roseline Neveling is the Founder of Neveling Arts+Culture, a boutique consultancy that advises private, corporate, and institutional clients on art acquisitions and complex divestments. Before establishing Neveling Arts+Culture in 2020, Roseline spent over a decade with Sotheby’s, where she held several executive roles at the auction house in New York and Hong Kong. Based in New York City, Roseline is a proud first-generation American with roots in Kerala, India. She discovered the beauty of Colorado as an Aspen Ideas Festival Fellow and is honored to return to collaborate with The Dairy. 

Submission Details:

The Go West exhibition will be a group show. The Dairy’s Visual Arts Curator, Stella Witcher, and the guest jurors will select artworks based on their relationship to the exhibition theme and represented communities. They will also determine the layout and installation of the works within the gallery space.

Selected applicants will collaborate with Curator of Visual Arts, Stella Witcher, the jurors, and The Dairy Arts Center’s team to refine or create original works for the exhibition.

• Exhibition Space: McMahon Gallery at The Dairy Arts Center. Please take a look over the gallery space for consideration when you apply: Gallery Information.
• Art Mediums: All visual art mediums are welcome.
• Application Type: Applications may be submitted for an individual artist or a group of artists/collective.
  • If applying as a collective, submit one consolidated application
  • Each artist or group may submit one application.
  • Applications may include up to 10 images for consideration (any media accepted) and must submit a minimum of 2 work samples.
  • Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a cohesive body of work that best represents their artistic vision.

Exhibition Process

Upon selection, artists will be notified and put in direct contact with the Dairy team to develop and display their works in the exhibition.

• Sales: Works for display should be for sale but is not a requirement. The Dairy Arts Center retains a commission of 40% on artwork sold. Please consider this in your pricing.
• Marketing and Programming: The Dairy will provide comprehensive exhibition documentation, an opening reception, studio visits, marketing, and curatorial advising. Further details upon selection.
• Delivery and Shipping: Artists are responsible for shipping costs, unless otherwise arranged in specific cases. Further details will be provided if your work is accepted.

Important Dates 

• Deadline for Application: December 6th, 2024 
• Artist Selection Announced: January 10th, 2025 
• Exhibition Dates: May 16 - June 29, 2025 
• Opening Reception: May 16, 2025 from 5-8pm 
• Deinstallation: June 30, 2025 (Works will be packed and shipped back the following 2 weeks from deinstall)
   

About the Dairy Arts Center 

Dairy Arts Center was founded in 1992 to provide cooperative workspaces for local artists and venues for live performance in Boulder County. Originally owned by the Watts-Hardy Dairy, the building’s transformation from a former milk-processing facility to a thriving multi-disciplinary arts hub for Boulder and beyond is a nationally recognized example of constructive urban development and renewal. The Dairy’s founders envisioned a community arts center where artists of all genres would create and inspire each other and the greater community. 

Today, this dream of shared art making is a thriving reality. The Dairy’s 42,000 square foot facility houses disciplines ranging from visual arts, theater, and film to dance and music. A professional environment complete with art galleries, performance venues, teaching studios, offices, rehearsal spaces, dance studios, and a 60-seat art-house cinema, it is Boulder’s largest multi-disciplinary arts center. The Dairy’s audience spans all ages, backgrounds and ability levels, from young student to seasoned performer and from first-time to seasoned theatergoers. Our audience is inclusive of all ages and backgrounds as well as adults and children of various cultures and levels of ability; our facility is accessible to persons with physical mobility challenges. 

Mission: The Dairy Arts Center provides diverse opportunities to create, learn, and engage in high quality performing, cinematic, and visual arts experiences. 

Vision: To develop a national reputation in the arts that reflects Boulder’s evolving artistic and entrepreneurial spirit. 

Values: As a nonprofit multidisciplinary arts venue, the Dairy Arts Center values community, curation, cultivation, and courage. These shared beliefs guide our day to day operations, programming selections (our own and those of our presenting

organizations), and our interactions with Dairy Arts Center staff and board, patrons, donors, partners, residents, volunteers, artists and all stakeholders. The Dairy Arts Center welcomes everyone, including people of any race, ethnicity, nationality, gender identity or presentation, sexual orientation, ability, religion, and citizen status.

Contact

For additional information or queries, contact Curator of Visual Arts, Stella Witcher, stella@thedairy.org

Application Requirements

•  Artist Biography: A brief bio about yourself.
• Artist Statement: A short statement describing your connection to the theme of "Go West", the AAPI community, and the works you are submitting
• Work Samples: Submit at least 2 and up to 10 work samples (any media accepted, including video, audio, and images).

Application Fees: $40 per application, non-refundable. We encourage artists from all socioeconomic status to apply. If the required application fee is a financial barrier for your application being submitted, please reach out for assistance to stella@thedairy.org 

Eligibility Criteria

• All mediums are welcome, and artists at all career stages are encouraged to apply.
• Priority will be given to artists who identify as part of the AAPI community and submissions with ties to or reflections on Colorado, and historically under-represented communities in the arts, including BIPOC, neurodivergent individuals, disabled people, and the LGBTQIA+ community. 
• Artists over 18 years of age are eligible to apply (younger artists may apply with parental permission, please reach out to stella@thedairy.org for more details)
• Works must be original, no prints or recreations will be considered (unless conceptually grounded within exhibition)
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Applications received after the due date will not be considered

If the required application fee is a financial barrier for your application being submitted, please reach out for assistance to stella@thedairy.org