Call Description

TURNING POINTS

Our lives are full of turning points, be they big or small, obvious or subtle, dreadful or sublime. They can be dramatic “Aha!” moments or subtle insights that quietly nudge us in a new direction. 

A person's way of thinking may pivot with new perspectives, with the influx of knowledge or through changes in circumstances. Big events in our personal lives can spin us around in disorienting ways, like falling in or out of love, beginning or changing careers, taking the leap into parenthood, suffering injury or illness, dealing with the death of loved ones. On a grander scale, in the world at large we are witness to societal sea changes, swings in political power, economic crises, the crumbling of governments, paradigm shifts in world order, wars, environmental disasters - events that can alter the course of millions of people’s lives. But even something as simple as a tap on the shoulder by a friend, a change in the weather or the discovery of a new path in the woods can present a turning point in our trajectory for a minute, an hour, or a day.

We invite you to share your visions of what a turning point can be. 

All photographic capture and printing processes are eligible. Please see below for more details.

3 Juror's Awards: $400, $300, $200

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ABOUT THE EXHIBITION:

Turning Points will be presented at Cabrillo gallery in partnership with the Center for Photographic Art's PhotoCarmel 2026, in which galleries, museums, photography groups and other venues across the Central Coast of California collaborate in the celebration of photography. The events, openings, exhibitions, etc. together foster appreciation and understanding of photography as an art form and its place in today’s culture. Turning Points will be listed in the directory of participants as well as on a map of the venues and locations. 

Timeline:

• Submission Deadline: January 21, 2026, 10:59 Pacific Time, 11:59 Mountain Time
• Selected artists notified by: February 5, 2026
• Delivery of artwork: 
  • Shipped artworks must arrive at Cabrillo Gallery no later than February 25
  • Work delivered in person will be accepted at the gallery on March 2 
• Exhibition: Selected artworks will be exhibited at Cabrillo Gallery March 9 to April 10, 2026.

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ABOUT THE JUROR:

Ann Jastrab, Executive Director of Center for Photographic Art in Carmel, is a curator, writer, editor and photographer who has also independently juried, curated and organized countless exhibitions for multiple national and international venues. Previous to her present position, she taught for many years at the Maine Photographic Workshops, printed for the Motion Picture Academy in Los Angeles, and in San Francisco was Gallery Director at RayKo Photo Center, then served as Gallery Manager at Scott Nichols Gallery.

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ABOUT CABRILLO GALLERY:

Cabrillo Gallery in Aptos, California presents high quality art and design exhibitions, lectures and other programming to promote a broad range of discourse about the visual arts and culture. Our programming serves to educate and inspire our academic community at Cabrillo College, the wider community of the San Francisco and Monterey Bay Areas, and beyond. To learn more about the gallery, visit https://www.cabrillo.edu/cabrillo-gallery/

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Application Requirements

Please be prepared to do the following before applying online:

• Be sure to create a CaFÉ account ahead of the submission deadline if you do not already have one.
• Fill out the application on the CaFÉ website.
• Submit high quality images of artworks in jpg format.
  • There is a limit of 3 artworks per artist.
  • Please note that you will need time to upload and provide information about each image before completing the application for this call.
  • For image file specifications and uploading instructions, please go to: https://www.callforentry.org/artist-help-cafe/uploading-media/
• Submit a brief description of how each artwork relates to the theme of the exhibition.
• Provide the following information:
  • Title of artwork
  • Dimensions (inches) H x W x D
  • Price of artwork
  • Year completed
  • Website url, Instagram and Facebook handles, if you have them
• Pay entry fees of $35 per artist, payable by PayPal or credit card.
• Please note: This is a physical exhibition; you will need to deliver or ship your work, at your own expense, to and from the gallery if selected.

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Eligibility Criteria

• Open to US residents.
• All photographic capture and printing processes are eligible, including antique and alternative/experimental processes, photograms, traditional/analog darkroom, digital, scanography, photo-collage, photographic mixed media, and photo-based etching, intaglio or screen printing.
  • *Please note: No AI-generated images will be considered.
• Entries must be original works of art not previously shown at Cabrillo Gallery.