exhibition-proposals

name: exhibition-proposals description: >- Applying for exhibitions and artist opportunities: writing exhibition proposals, project statements, artist bios for applications, artist residency applications, curating a submission portfolio, jury submissions, what galleries and curators look for, following up after submission. Triggers: exhibition proposal, gallery submission, artist residency, call for artists, open call, juried show, artist application, exhibition application, residency application, curator.

An exhibition proposal is a pitch for your work and your vision. Galleries, residencies, and curated shows receive many more applications than they can accept — a clear, specific, well-matched proposal stands out from one that's technically competent but generic.

Know what you're applying for

Before writing a word, understand the venue:

What kind of work do they show? Look at their past exhibitions, not just their stated mission.
Who is their audience? Community-based space vs. commercial gallery vs. museum vs. university gallery have different contexts and expectations.
What's the selection process? Jury panel, curator selection, committee vote? Knowing who reads the proposal shapes how you write it.
Is this show thematic or open? A thematic call wants to know how your work fits the theme. An open call wants to know who you are as an artist.

A proposal written for a specific venue reads differently than a generic submission. The extra time to research the venue pays off.

What most applications ask for

Component	Notes
Artist statement	Your overall practice — see `artist-statement-writing`
Project statement	This specific work or exhibition concept
Artist bio	Third-person, career-focused
CV / resume	Exhibition history, education, publications, awards
Work samples	Images with captions (title, medium, dimensions, year)
Budget (some)	For project grants or installation proposals
References	Sometimes; usually for residencies

Read the application instructions exactly. Submitting a 500-word statement when they asked for 250 words signals you don't follow directions.

The project statement

The project statement describes the specific work you're proposing — not your entire practice. It answers:

What will be shown? How many works, what scale, what medium?
What is this body of work about?
Why is this the right moment or context for this work?
Why are you the artist to make it?

For an existing body of work: focus on the work's concerns, what it's in conversation with, and why it belongs in this space.

For proposed work (residencies, project grants): describe what you'll make, how you'll make it, and what resources you need.

Length: 200–400 words is typical unless the application specifies otherwise.

The artist bio (for applications)

Third person, past tense for history, present tense for current work.

Essentials:

Name and cultural affiliation (for Indigenous artists, be specific — nation, not just "Indigenous")
What you make
Key exhibitions and collections (be selective — 3–5 most relevant)
Any relevant recognition
Current location or affiliation

Keep it under 150 words for most applications. Lead with what's most relevant to this specific call.

Tom Myer (Haudenosaunee) is a digital artist whose work draws on
Indigenous visual traditions to explore the intersection of ancestral
knowledge and contemporary form. His geometric digital prints have been
exhibited at [venues] and are held in [collections]. Myer is a founding
member of Thunder Wolf Native, a nonprofit supporting Indigenous art
and culture. He is based in [location].

Work samples

Images are often the first — and sometimes only — thing a jury looks at carefully. They should:

Be high quality (300 DPI for print applications, minimum 1500px longest dimension for digital)
Be cropped and color-corrected — show the work, not studio clutter
Be recent and representative of the work you're proposing
Match the project statement — if you're proposing geometric animal prints, submit those, not a different series

Captions matter. Include: title, year, medium, dimensions. Some applications also want edition size, sale price, or availability.

Selection strategy: submit your strongest work that most clearly demonstrates what you're proposing. 8 strong images outperform 20 mixed ones.

Artist CV

An artist CV is different from a professional resume. It typically includes:

NAME
website | email | location

EDUCATION
MFA, BFA, or relevant training (reverse chronological)

SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Year — Title — Venue, City

GROUP EXHIBITIONS
Year — Title — Venue, City

COLLECTIONS
Public or institutional collections (private collectors optional)

AWARDS / RECOGNITION

PUBLICATIONS / PRESS
Articles, catalogs, features

RESIDENCIES

GRANTS / FUNDING

Keep it current. It's a living document — add to it after every exhibition and update it annually.

For a first application where your CV is thin: don't inflate it. A short CV with strong images and a clear statement is better than a padded CV that raises doubts.

Residency applications

Residency applications often ask additional questions that exhibition proposals don't:

Why this residency? They want to know you've done your research — what about their program, location, community, or resources is relevant to your work right now?

What will you work on? More specific than an exhibition proposal — they want to know what you'll make during your time there.

What do you want to get out of it? Honest answers about learning, development, community, or resources are better than "it would be an honor."

For Indigenous artist residencies specifically: many ask about community connection and the relationship between your work and the community you serve or come from. Be specific and genuine.

What curators and juries look for

From those who review applications regularly:

Coherence — does the work, statement, and bio tell a consistent story about who this artist is?
Development — is there a body of work with depth, or a collection of unrelated experiments?
Fit — does this work genuinely belong in our program, or does it feel like a mass submission?
Clarity — can I understand what this artist is doing and why without working too hard?

The most common rejection reasons:

Work doesn't fit the gallery's program (research the venue)
Proposal is too vague ("I explore themes of identity and nature")
Images are poor quality
Application didn't follow instructions

Following up

After submitting:

Note the notification date they gave and don't follow up before it
If they said 6 weeks and 8 weeks have passed: a brief, polite email is acceptable
If rejected: a short thank-you and request to be considered for future opportunities is worth sending; curators remember artists who are gracious

Don't take rejection personally. Shows are curated for specific contexts; a rejection from one venue often means "not right for this program," not "your work isn't good."

Artist statement writing: artist-statement-writing
Grant writing for artists (nonprofit structure): nonprofit-comms
Art business and pricing: art-business

exhibition-proposals