Art of Play 

An Exhibition at Sebastopol Center for the Arts 

August 9 – September 7, 2025 

Sebastopol Center for the Arts (SebArts) invites artists to explore the theme of play in its many forms for the upcoming juried exhibition, Art of Play. This exhibition seeks to celebrate the freedom, creativity, and personal growth that play inspires. 

Call for Entry 

How does play influence art making? How do artists interpret the concept of play in their work? Whether through experimentation with color, materials, and ideas, or through reflections on toys, playgrounds, and the role of play in child development, this exhibition encourages diverse and imaginative responses. 

From playful explorations of abstract concepts to representations of how play fuels creativity, artists are invited to share their unique perspectives. Each selected piece will be accompanied by a short artist statement describing the role of play in the creative process, offering deeper insights into the art and its inspiration. 

Themes to Explore: 

● Playfulness: Art that evokes a childlike sense of wonder and fun. Playgrounds, toys and their impact on creativity and child development. 

● Wonder: Pieces that spark curiosity or awe. 

● Joy: Creations that celebrate happiness, delight, and connection. ● Freedom: The freedom and personal development found in play. Expressions of liberation, improvisation, or the unexpected. 

● Laughter: Art that embraces humor, whimsy, and the unexpected

We welcome submissions that embody the themes of play, wonder, joy, freedom, and laughter in the following formats: 

● 2D Art: Paintings, drawings, photography, prints, and mixed media works. ● 3D Art: Sculpture and assemblages that inspire a sense of playfulness or interaction. 

● Playground-Inspired Works: Functional or conceptual designs inspired by playground structures. 

● Installations: Large-scale or immersive works that transform the gallery space into a playful environment. 

● Interactive Art: Works that invite audience participation, encourage movement, or provoke curiosity and laughter. 

● All mediums including painting, drawing, video, digital, film, projection, photography, sculptural and experiential are encouraged to apply and will be reviewed by the juror.  

● Traditionally, work accepted into the SebArts exhibitions are displayed in our gallery. For “The Art of Play”, we are also looking for “art based” pieces that can activate SebArts visually immersive location in intriguing ways and that take advantage of the exterior and lobby space. These could be installation, play structures, experimental animations (traditional or digital); sensory based, experiential and interactive works; intellectual provocations; experimental art narratives; etc. 

Call for Entry: Opens March 1 on CaFE 

Exhibition Dates: August 9 - September 7, 2025  

Call Opens: March 1, 2025 

Call Closes: June 13, 2025 

Jurying dates: June 16 - 20, 2025 

Notifications to artists: June 27, 2025  

Deadline for Mailed Artwork to arrive at Seb Arts: July 21, 2025 

In Person Drop Off: Monday, July 21, 2025- 10AM-5PM (or by pre-arranged appointment) 

Opening Reception: August 9, 2025 4-6PM 

Medium & Dimensions 

The only size limitation is that the work needs to be able to fit through a 7’ by 7’ gallery door. Our experienced installation team can install your piece with any method with your clearly written instructions.

Please Note In order to promote artists currently working, we are asking for work produced in the last 3 years. 

Questions? Damian Estrella at destrella@sebarts.org or 707-829-4797 x 1003

Application Requirements

Entry-Fees:
$35 per entry

$5 CaFE charge for addition entries

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility 

● Open to artists worldwide. 

● Maximum of 3 pieces of artwork per artist. 

● Wall hung work may not exceed 5’ height x 4’ width, but 3D work can be larger. ● Wall mounted work needs to include fixtures and sleeves, with the exception of rods and wood bars which we can provide for those pieces mailed from out of the area. Work should have hanging instructions. 

● All work must not have been previously shown in the SebArts Gallery. ● All work must have been completed in the last 3 years. 

Entry-Fees in callforentry.com (CaFe) 

$35 per entry (with a small additional fee, $5, for up to 2 additional works) 

Awards 

1st place $500, 2nd place $300, 3rd place $100, two $50 coordinator awards 

Commission 

Artists will receive 60% of the sales price of the work sold. 

Juror Biographies:

Cas Holman is the founder and chief designer of the toy company Heroes Will Rise and a former Professor of Industrial Design at RISD. Cas travels the globe speaking about early education, the design process, and the value of play in all aspects of life. She has shared her perspective in workshops and seminars with teams at Google, Nike, LEGO Foundation, Disney Imagineering, and more. Some of her designs include toys like Rigamajig and structures at the Highline and the Liberty Science Center. Cas lives in New York City and designs from her studio in Brooklyn. Her philosophy and approach to designing for play was featured in the award-winning documentary series Abstract: The Art of Design on Netflix. 

Submissions must be entered online only 

● Please ensure that all images are 5MB or less in size and are in JPEG format. ● Please submit a high quality image that best represents your work. Work that differs from the submission image may not be included in the exhibition. ● Please include dimensions and weight. 

● Artists who propose site-based pieces will be notified if they are being considered on the notification date, and will be contacted for more details and specifications to determine feasibility before the piece is officially selected for the exhibition. 

● Artists who propose installations or tech-based pieces, please include equipment needs and what the artist will provide. For site-based pieces, the images/videos

submitted should show related work by the artists that can help us visualize the proposed piece, and possibly a drawing or digital mock-up of the proposed idea. ● Artists who propose video, please submit video excerpts or video documentation of pieces, please limit it to 1:30 min documentation (or a link with cue times) or a 2min excerpt (or a link with cue times) and a link to the whole piece.

Work that is shipped: 

All work must have the artist’s name and contact information on or attached to the piece of work. 

● Ship to ATTN: VISUAL ARTS TEAM SebArts, 282 S. High St, Sebastopol, CA 95472 

● Shipped work must arrive by July 21, 2025 

● Artist is responsible for all shipping and handling costs to and from the exhibit. ● Each shipped entry must be packaged in a reusable container for the return of work Include  

 packaging instructions if necessary. 

● In order to return your unsold art, each shipped entry MUST include a return label and a prepaid return shipping form (UPS or FedEx). 

● Unsold work, with valid return forms for shipping, will be shipped within 15 days after the last day of the show. 

Hand delivered art 

● Must be dropped off Monday, July 21 10am - 5pm (or by prior arrangement) ● Must have artist name and contact information on the back of the work. 

● PLEASE unpack and inspect your returned artwork and communicate any concerns with SCA within 14 days of receipt. SCA is not responsible for damage to art after 15 days.