Open Calls
Overview
Hamilton Artists Inc. (The Inc.) accepts proposals from artists, collectives, and curators at various stages of their careers for its exhibition platforms and public programs. We welcome proposals from artists working in all disciplines and from local, regional and national communities. As an artist-run centre, we are passionate about providing a space for creative exploration and risk-taking. We are interested in unconventional and challenging contemporary art that engages with critical, conceptual, or experimental ideas and approaches. The Inc. encourages submissions that showcase artists and curators’ most recent endeavours as well as works that incite conversation and represent diverse perspectives. In addition to our galleries, our Special Projects foster activities that do not take the form of regular gallery exhibitions.
We welcome submissions from artists of all backgrounds (including but not limited to): Indigenous, Black, people of colour, refugees, newcomers, immigrants, Two-Spirit, LGBTQ+, gender non-binary persons, persons with disabilities, and those on low-incomes or living in poverty. Please advise us of any accommodations needed to ensure you can access and complete the submissions process.
Please see the full descriptions for each call in order to identify which opportunity is best suited to your practice/ objectives.
Open Opportunities
James Gallery 2025 Call for Submissions
Deadline: September 1, 2025
Hamilton Artists Inc. is seeking dynamic proposals from artists and curators at all stages of their careers and from across disciplines. As an artist-run centre, the Inc. is interested in works that push boundaries and engage with critical, conceptual and/or experimental thinking from diverse perspectives.
James Gallery is the Inc.’s dedicated members’ gallery. You must be a member in good standing to exhibit in this space. The Inc. always welcomes new and returning members, who will then be eligible to exhibit in this space.
We are seeking applicants for two themed calls, as well as a self-directed, self-curated call.
Application Requirements:
- Applicant contact information (including full name, address, city, email, phone number)
- Brief description of your proposed project (350 words max.)
- Describe what you are planning on doing. What will this work look like? Where will it take place? If your project is participatory, how will people engage with it? What resources do you need to successfully realize this project?
- Artist biography (150 words max.)
- Artist’s CV (Optional. 3 pages max.)
- Please title the file as 'FIRSTNAME_LASTNAME_CV'.
- Up to 10 images contextualizing the work (may submit doodles, sketches or renderings); and/or up to 5 minutes of audio or video (please send Youtube, Vimeo, or SoundCloud links included in your single PDF or Word document)
- Please title each file 'FIRSTNAME_LASTNAME_number' to coincide with your documentation support list.
- Documentation support list
Alternative Ways to Apply:
Hamilton Artists Inc. is committed to equity and inclusion in all aspects of its operations, and will accept alternative submission formats.
- Audio submission: 15 minutes max. and no larger than 200 MB, or sent as a soundcloud link.
- Video submission: 15 minutes max. and no larger than 200 MB, or sent as a youtube/vimeo link.
- Hard-copy paper submission: Do not include original artworks. Artwork examples may be submitted as photocopies, or on a USB or CD.
Please advise us of any accommodations needed to ensure you can access and complete the submissions process.
Please submit your application(s) to the calls through the forms below!
We thank all applicants for their interest, but due to the high volume of submissions we receive, only successful applicants will be notified. Successful applicants will be notified in mid-October 2025.
For questions or help with your application, please contact our Artistic Director, Sanaa Humayun at programming@theinc.ca.
Themed Call #1: Dreams to get you through the night
Exhibition Dates: January 30 - March 14, 2026
You’re laying in bed, covers drawn over your face with the glow of your phone hurting your eyes as you watch one last video, hear one more shortform thinkpiece about the state of the world. Shut off your phone, close your eyes, pull one foot out of the blanket to keep cool. Push all of it out of your head - think about the fantasies you hold close to your heart, your curated imaginings that carry you until you sleep, until consciousness rests and real dreams can take over. What tender hopes and wishes for the future carry you to sleep? Uncertainty that mars your footsteps as you move through a hard world. No game plan, no safety net. But that is for tomorrow. Right now your bed is soft, and your dreams are sweet. What do you dream about?
Apply to Dreams to get you through the night here.
Themed Call #2: have you eaten?
Exhibition Dates: June 12 - August 1, 2026
'have you eaten?' is a question synonymous with love, asked often across many cultures and diasporas. Maybe your grandmother questioned you upon entering her home, later heaping your plate with dal and rice. The artists in this exhibition will reflect on how art can be of service, an expression of care. Investigating the gendered question of who does the cooking, and who does the eating, and who does the washing. Challenging the myth of scarcity perpetuated by capitalism, this exhibition boldly declares: yes, there is enough food to feed us all.. How does food nourish beyond being fuel for our bodies? What stories do we tell ourselves and each other through food? And can we challenge diet culture by engaging in the simple life affirming act of eating? Have you eaten?
Apply to have you eaten? here.
Self-Curated Call
Exhibition Dates: April 3 - May 15, 2026 & September 4 - October 10, 2026
Members may act as an independent curator in an exhibition featuring up to 3 artists, or include themselves in an exhibition featuring up to 4 artists. Exhibitions should have a strong theme connecting the artworks on display. The committee is interested in works that are creative, push boundaries and engage with critical, conceptual or experimental thinking from a range of perspectives, prioritizing the voices of Hamilton region artists.
Closed Opportunities
Submissions to the Cannon Gallery, Cannon Project Wall, Indigenous Residency, and Special Projects are now closed. Please check back soon or subscribe to our mailing list at the bottom of this web-page to find out when to apply to future calls.
Frequestly Asked Questions
We accept exhibition proposals each fall. Please check back soon or subscribe to our mailing list at the bottom of this web-page to find out when to apply to future calls.
Only submissions to our James Gallery require you to be a current member. As a member-driven organization, we have a dedicated members gallery which is the James Gallery. We welcome anyone and everyone to become a member and join Hamilton Artists Inc.’s community! Various membership options are available to ensure our community remains inclusive and barrier-free. Click here to become a member!
We welcome and encourage all artists of any discipline to apply to our calls, regardless of where they live!
Please visit our Submissions page and follow the specific application instructions for each exhibition opportunity you would like to be considered for.
Yes, artists are welcome to apply to more than one of our submission opportunities unless they have recently exhibited at Hamilton Artists Inc. If an artist has recently had an exhibition in the Cannon Gallery, they are not permitted to exhibit again until a period of three years has transpired. Likewise, if an applicant has had an exhibition in the James Gallery, they are not permitted to exhibit in the Cannon gallery for a period of one year in order to be fair to other applicants.
Yes! We also accept audio and video submissions in place of written proposals. Please answer all the questions from the application form and send us your recording along with the other required materials (i.e. your contact details, images, bio, CV, etc.). Submissions in alternative formats can be sent directly to selections@theinc.ca.
- Audio submission: 15 minutes max. and no larger than 100 MB, or sent as a soundcloud link.
- Video submission: 15 minutes max. and no larger than 1 GB, or sent as a youtube/vimeo link.
Please note: Due to the limitations imposed by COVID-19, we will not be accepting hard-copy paper submissions this year. Please advise us of any accommodations needed to ensure you can access and complete the submissions process. For questions or help with your application please contact Programming Assistant, Kristina Durka, at programmingassistant@theinc.ca or leave a message at 905-529-3355.
Due to the high volume of submissions we receive, unfortunately we can’t offer to review applications. However, our staff are always available to answer your questions. Please don’t hesitate to email or call us at any time. We also host occasionally host Submission Cafés, which are drop-in sessions where applicants can receive one-on-one help on their in-progress applications on a first come, first served basis. Everyone is welcome to attend these sessions to get feedback and tips on their application.
There are currently no Submission Cafés scheduled. Please check back soon for updates.
In general, we welcome photos of past work as reference to your artistic practice but would like to see examples of artworks being proposed for exhibition, if available. Photos of finished work, evidence of works in progress, or even preparatory drawings and renderings are welcome. If you are proposing a body of work that isn’t yet created, you may contextualize your practice with examples of relevant past works along with detailed descriptions of the works you plan on making in your application form. Please refer to submission guidelines for each call for more information on what is required.
For submissions to the James Gallery, the selected artists can expect notification 3 months after the deadline. For all other submissions, notification can be expected in 4-8 months after the deadline. We thank all applicants who apply but due to the high volume of submissions we receive, only those selected for an exhibition will be notified.
We thank all submitting artists for the care and thought put into their proposals. We receive a very high volume of applications and as such only those selected for an exhibition will be notified.
We receive an exceptionally high volume of submissions for comparatively few exhibition opportunities. It can be quite competitive! If you appropriately followed the application guidelines, we encourage you consider applying again next year.
All members are welcome to submit to our annual members’ exhibition, SWARM, which takes place every winter. Artwork drop-off is typically in early November and the exhibition will open in December. Please check our social media or ‘news’ page for the latest updates.
An Artist Biography is a summary of an artists’s career highlights and accomplishments usually written in the third person, whereas a CV is a list of an artist’s professional experiences. A Project Description explains the aesthetic and conceptual details of artworks that are proposed for a specific exhibition.
Artist Biography
Your Artist Biography is a summary of significant facts about your art career usually written in third person. An Artist Biography can include your name, your discipline (i.e. painting, performance, installation), and some background information. Information to consider adding to an Artist Biography includes: where you are currently living, where you work, your education, and a selection of your art experiences. To see examples, refer to some of our Past, Current and Upcoming Exhibitions. Each exhibition includes a biography for the artists or curators. Click here for more information.
Curriculum Vitae
An artist’s Curriculum Vitae (CV) is a summary of an artist’s professional experiences formatted as a list.
Each CV will be unique to each artist’s field of discipline. To write your own, you can list your art education, exhibition history, record of performances, residencies you have participated in, or collections your work is included in. Your CV will also include your contact information including your name, address, phone number, email, and website (if applicable).
For examples, visit the Hamilton Arts Council Blog to see their CV templates: Click here for more information.
Project Description or Project Proposal
A Project Description is how an artist communicates with a gallery, or selections jury.
An artist’s Project Description can include:
- The artwork’s medium, or the materials the artwork is made of.
- The size of the artwork, or the space it will occupy.
- A description of what the artwork looks like.
- An explanation of what the artwork/exhibition are about. What are the concepts or ideas behind the work? Explain any specific research topics that inspired the proposed exhibition.
- The impact the artwork may have on the audience.
- A description of any special techniques that were used to create the artwork.
- Describe how the artwork may be installed, and any tools or technology required for the mounting of the artwork.
- Any other relevant information which would assist the selections jury in understanding your application.
All submission streams have specific Project Description requirements on each unique application form. Please refer to the full list of calls to determine which submission stream is best suited to the nature of your project. Click here for more information.
Programming Assistant, Kristina Durka: programmingassistant@theinc.ca
Programming Director, Abedar Kamgari: programming@theinc.ca
Leave a message at 905 529 3355 (please note: emails will be seen more quickly while we are working remotely.)
©2025 Hamilton Artists Inc.