Call Description

OOPPORTUNITY: CALL FOR ENTRIES
"Formless" 9/11/25 - 10/5/25
Opening Reception Sat 9/13/25

In 1929, philosopher, Georges Bataille's concept of “Formless” challenged traditional notions of form and order in art. In the 1990s, art historians Rosalind Krauss and Yves-Alain Bois’s book “Formless: A User's Guide” expanded on this idea, arguing that artists throughout the 20th century had unknowingly engaged with formlessness as a creative strategy.

The word “formless” describes something lacking a definite shape or structure. We expand on the idea of “Formless” with our show, "formless", to include works that project a sense of poetic lightness, fragility, and etherealness in weight, volume, color, or mass, or that may be atmospheric and seem to defy gravity. Some of the works may evoke within the viewer a meditative sense of calm; in others, a sense of mystery. Works accepted may or may not be abstract, objective or nonobjective, narrative, or imbued with formal qualities of line and shape.

Think along the lines of Cy Twombly’s active calligraphic drawing; Mark Rothko’s color field paintings; Terry Winters nature and natural phenomena-inspired imagery; JMW Turner and Caspar David Friedrich’s atmospheric luminosity; Joan Mitchell’s gestural, exuberant, colorful marks.

In keeping with our love of music, this show is dedicated to Bob Dylan, whose music, known for its poetic blend of folk and rock and socially conscious lyrics, evolved from acoustic ballads to electric anthems, and his style morphed, pushed boundaries, and set trends that influenced generations of musicians with his unique voice and literary approach to popular music. Dylan’s song, Shelter From the Storm, relates to our “formless” theme, and we especially like it.

Drawing Rooms will feature selected works from this exhibition for sale on Artsy.net 

Drawing Rooms is a non-profit art gallery at the Mana Contemporary campus in Jersey City, producing exhibitions, programs, and public art projects in the NJ/NY area with a national and international reach since 2001. 

About the Curator

Anne Trauben is the Curator and Gallery Director at Drawing Rooms, a non-profit art center and gallery. Anne began working with Victory Hall Inc. in 2009, and was a founding artist of Drawing Rooms in 2012. Since 2013, she has organized, curated and created programming for year-round exhibitions of multiple artists at Drawing Rooms in the former convent on Grand St in Jersey City, and in 2018, at the new Drawing Rooms gallery in the Topps Building. In 2020, during the pandemic, she organized, curated and created programming for Prayers for the Pandemic, a 4 part Drawing Rooms national public art exhibition, and solo / two-person exhibitions at Dvora Gallery. In 2022, after the pandemic, Drawing Rooms reopened in a newly expanded space in the Topps Building where she has since been organizing, curating and creating programming for gallery exhibitions and public art programs. Anne is the Founder, Publisher and Editor of Nieuw Art Blog since 2017.

Learn more about the call below.

EVENTS
*Opening Reception Sat 9/13/25
*Meet The Artists: Sun, 9/21/25 and 9/28/25 3-5p & 10/5/25 4-6p 
*Closing Reception: 10/5/25, 3-5p

CURATION
The curator will choose one or more of each artist’s works and place them in context together to create visual, formal, and conceptual connections, amplifying themes and deepening ways of understanding the works. 

ACCEPTABLE WORKS 

2-dimensional works that are unframed, framed, or mounted on cradled panel. Media: painting or drawing on paper, canvas, or other media; collage or textiles, photography, prints. Works must be original. No AI or reproductions of original works. 

All works must be For Sale.

Size: Works that are dropped-off at Drawing Rooms, Jersey City can be any size.  Shipped works must be no larger than 18 x 24 inches, be unframed, and must meet Shipping Requirements below.

Please make sure any unframed paper works are durable enough to be exhibited with clips. We will not accept ripped, torn, wrinkled, or otherwise damaged or overly fragile paper.

HANGING PREPARATION
Works can be unframed, framed, or mounted on a cradled panel. 

Please use simple frames in white, black, or wood tones, no floating acrylic frames. All works must be ready-to-hang. Works can be hung from picture wire (not fishing line), D-rings, saw-tooth hangers, or the top of the frame or cradled panel. Please self-assess if your frame is strong enough for this. Cleats or any hanging systems that require the use of screws in the wall are not acceptable. 

Works that present hanging problems may not be included in the exhibit. 

SALE OF ARTWORK
All works in the exhibit must be for sale with 60% to artists and 40% to Drawing Rooms. 

SUBMISSIONS DUE: 8/8/25
ARTIST NOTIFICATION: 8/13/25

DROP OFF 
*Thurs 8/28/25 4-7p, Tues, 9/2/25, 4:30 - 7:30p
Accepted work may be delivered by yourself or someone you assign. Our entrance is on Newark Avenue. Drivers: turn into Mana/Topps building driveway and then come to our entrance. Free parking lot.

MAIL-IN
Must ARRIVE by Wednesday, 9/3/25

SHIPPING REQUIREMENTS
We prefer works to be dropped off at Drawing Rooms. If you live at a distance, or live locally and have an extenuating issue, you may ship to our location below. 

Please follow these instructions. 

ONLY unframed 18” x 24” or less, works on paper/panel may be mailed-in, and must fit in a padded or cardboard shipping envelope, (stay flat photo envelope / rigid mailer) and you may include a piece of cardboard inside the envelope if you choose, or a tube, and you MUST include a return label or postage. NO BOXES, please. Send to the location listed below.

Works will be checked upon arrival. If works do not meet the above criteria, they will be excluded. Drawing Rooms has the right to exclude any works for any reason.

LOCATION (near Journal Sq PATH)  
Drawing Rooms
926 Newark Ave. T101
Jersey City NJ, 07306

PICKUP
*Sun, 10/5/25 6-7p, Mon, 10/6/25 4-7p

MAIL BACK
*Starts Tues, 10/7/25

Application Requirements

JPGS

• You may submit up to 5 images of your work, unframed.
• Each jpg must measure at least 1200 pixels on the shorter dimension.

FAQ
What resolution should my images be? 
Any resolution (pixels per inch) is fine. We only care about the overall dimensions (how many pixels height by pixels wide). This is called pixel dimensions on the Image Size function of Photoshop. Minimum size 1,200 pixels on short dimension.

How large can my images be?                         
No more than 3000 pixels. Please crop any background out of your images. 

Is the work insured?
All works are insured when they are in our possession. 

How are sales handled?
Commissions from any sales will be paid to the artist within 30 days of our receiving the payment, via check, PayPal or cash depending on the situation.

Why did my work not get chosen?
There are many factors which influence final selections and ultimately not all submissions can be included. We hope all the artists submitting work understand this and continue to respond to future calls.

Eligibility Criteria

• Artists must be over the age of 18.