Call Description

At the heart of craft is the act of play: testing limits, breaking rules, and finding joy in the unexpected. Whether through improvisation, accident, or deliberate experimentation, artists discover new possibilities when they let materials lead the way.

Serious Play is a call for art that invites contemporary makers to celebrate curiosity, risk, and discovery in their creative process. Works might emerge from playful gestures, unconventional techniques, or unexpected combinations of media. They may highlight moments of chance or simply revel in the tactile pleasure of material engagement.

This exhibition seeks craft that embodies exploration—where the making is as important as the finished form, and where materials are collaborators as much as tools.

Artists are encouraged (but not required) to consider how their work engages one or more of the following approaches:

• Improvisation & Chance – works that embrace accidents, unpredictability, or improvisation in making.
• Process as Play – works where experimentation, repetition, or testing limits become visible parts of the finished form.
• Tactile Joy – works that revel in the sensual, textural, or kinetic pleasure of material engagement.
• Unexpected Combinations – works that hybridize media, tools, or traditions in unconventional or surprising ways.
• Rules & Games – works that create, bend, or break systems—treating making itself as a form of structured play.

These themes are offered as inspiration; artists may interpret “material play” broadly, across function, form, or concept.

About Craft Alliance: 

Craft Alliance has been providing the Saint Louis metro craft education for over 60 years. Located in The Maker District of  St. Louis, Craft Alliance is a hub for artists, enthusiasts, and students to explore, learn, and celebrate the world of contemporary craft. We offer studios for ceramics, print and paper arts, metals, fibers, glass, wood, an artists-in-residence program, robust community programs, and an exhibition program.

Key Dates: 

Call dates: September 18, 2025- November 23, 2025

Exhibition dates: January 16 - February 27, 2026

Applicants notified by: December 12, 2025

Work delivered by: January 5, 2026

Work Returned: March 3-9, 2026

Sales: 

All work submitted should be available for sale. Any sales during the length of the exhibition will be transferred to the artist after Craft Alliance takes a 50% commission of the total sale. Please include the price of work, and account for the 50% commission, in your CaFE account portfolio/artwork image details.

Shipping and Drop-off: 

Artists should make arrangements for works to arrive on site at Craft Alliance no later than January 5th, 2026.  Artists are responsible for shipping works to Craft Alliance and for insuring shipped work for its full value. Please include a pre-paid shipping label with the artwork for return. 

Application Requirements

Please submit:

• High resolution images of 3 pieces for consideration
• A pdf containing a bio, a cv, and artist statement
• An entry fee of $30 for 3 images and $10 for each additional piece you would like to submit

Eligibility Criteria

• Open to artists 18 years and older.
• Open to works in clay, fiber, glass, metal, wood, paper, and other craft-based media or hybrid forms.
• Both functional and non-functional works are eligible.
• Works must have been completed in the past five years and not previously exhibited at Craft Alliance
• Full Time Staff members are ineligible for submitting work.