Open Call inviting visual artists to submit their works for participation in the international exhibition “Cities of the Void”, which will take place in Athens, conceived & curated by Paris Kapralos.
The official languages of the exhibition are Greek and English. A bilingual commemorative catalogue-book will be published in digital format, and the exhibition will also be available online through the ARTgrID platform for one month.
Accepted artworks. Artists may submit works of painting, photography, digital art, and video art, regardless of style.
Artists are free to engage with the exhibition’s theme in whatever way they consider appropriate.
Conceptual framework. The exhibition “Cities of the Void” explores the relationship between spatial disuse and social need, ownership and the common good, abandonment and the possibility of redefining meaning. What do empty spaces reveal about the societies that surround them? Abandoned buildings, undeveloped plots, disused infrastructure, and urban gaps form a distinctive geography of absence, bearing the imprint of economic transformations, political decisions, social inequalities, and collective aspirations.
In architectural thought, Christopher Alexander, through “A Pattern Language”, highlights the importance of relationships between spaces and human activities. Similarly, Ignasi de Solà-Morales’ concept of “terrain vague” illuminates the ambiguous nature of urban areas that have become disconnected from their established functions while retaining the potential for unpredictable forms of appropriation.
The political dimension of the void becomes particularly compelling through Theodor W. Adorno’s negative dialectics: absence can serve as an indication of what escapes dominant classifications and claims to completeness. At the same time, Bonnie Honig, in examining the significance of public things for democracy, offers a framework for reflecting on abandonment, collective responsibility, and access to shared space.
Through art, the void is approached as a political trace, an aesthetic experience, and a field of potential transformations. Who decides what remains unused, who is excluded from its use, and what forms of collective life might emerge there?
What you need to submit. Please send an email to artistsartgrid@gmail.com with the subject line “CITIES” and include the following:
- (1) Photographs of up to 2 available works, with each work submitted as a separate image file in large-format JPG, with good clarity and high resolution. Please note: the submitted works are not indicative. If selected, you may exhibit exclusively the work or works you submitted. Works on paper must be photographed without a frame/glass.
- (2) Details of the works, using the corresponding file name (e.g. A1.JPG) as a reference for each work. The information should be listed in the following order, separated by commas: Artist’s full name, Title of work, Materials and technique, Dimensions (in centimetres, Height X Width for wall-mounted works, or Height X Width X Length for sculptures), Year of completion.
- (3) Your contact details: Full name, Email, telephone number, and location (country if you live outside Greece, and city/place of residence).
✨ If you wish to submit Video Art, please either send us standard video files via WeTransfer, together with an email containing the remaining details, or provide a link (Vimeo, YouTube) through which the video can be viewed in its entirety.
Important notes
– Clarifications, queries, and questions strictly concerning the submission process should be sent in writing by email to the submission address above and will be answered within 24 hours.
– Information regarding the organisation of the exhibition and the participation proposal that will be made if you are selected will be provided exclusively to selected artists after submission and selection, not before. Submissions that do not include all the requested information or do not follow the specified format and submission procedure will be disregarded.
– If you are selected, we will contact you promptly by reply email with full information about the procedures for your participation.
– The submission period is not necessarily intended for the creation of new works. You may submit existing works that you feel represent you, are relevant to the theme, and that you would like to present within the context of the exhibition.
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Sunday, November 22, 2026 at 23:59.
