Call for Participation

Paper Politics
A Show of Socially Engaged Printmaking
In These Times, April 17-June 30, 2004

Submission Deadline: March 25th

Contact:
josh (at) justseeds.org
773.342.8251
POBox 476971, Chicago, IL 60647

From April 17th through June 30th, 2004, The Street Art Workers, In The Times and Version>04 will be holding a socially engaged printmaking show in Chicago. This exhibit will showcase print-based art which engages with the larger world via themes of social justice and global equity. Because of its accessibility and reproducibility, printmaking has long been used in struggles for freedom and social equality. Prints are often publically posted and their bold graphic qualities are used to communicate with and educate broad audiences all over the world.

This show will contain work from dozens of artists. Much of the art will be in multiples available for sale at inexpensive prices, $25 and below. The hope is that the show will help build an audience for these important ideas by allowing many people to buy the art and to support socially-concious artists. Printmaking for this exhibit includes silkscreen, letterpress, stenciling, etching, block prints, hand-processed photo prints, any kind of printing on paper that produces multiples and retains some evidence of the human hand (no digital or laser prints).

Half of the proceeds from the show will benefit the Street Art Workers (SAW), which is a national arts collective that believes in the use of "street art" (posters, stencils, stickers, etc.) as a viable and effective means of communication. By distributing their work through a network of artists in several cities across the country, SAW hopes to have a powerful visual impact. SAW also seeks to create graphics which go beyond simple reaction and "cool", which instead begin to educate and motivate people. In 2002 SAW covered 8 cities with anti-prison artwork, and in 2003 they hit 17 cities with utopian/dystopian visions for the future. Proceeds from this show will help SAW concentrate more art in cities within the network, and hopefully expand it's reach.

This show is also part of the Version>04: Invisible Networks convergence happening in Chicago from April 16-May 2. You can find out more about Version>04 at www.versionfest.org

Interested in participating? This is how the show will work:

*Submit paper prints in multiples (this can be silkscreens, blockprints, stencils, etching, photoprints, any kind of printmaking!) dealing social justice and/or existing in our current world.

*Price your prints somewhere between $1-$25. At least 50% of the proceeds will go to SAW, but you can definitely donate a larger percentage if you want.

*Clearly enclose with your prints the EXACT name you want your art attributed to and any titles for your prints. If you want people that come to the show to be able to contact you, include your email, address, or phone number (your choice).

Submission Deadline March 25th

Send work to:
Josh MacPhee/SAW
POBox 476971
Chicago, IL 60647

www.justseeds.org
www.inthesetimes.com
www.versionfest.org