3 International Open Calls Every Woman Artist Should Know
Building an art career is about more than creating meaningful work. It is also about finding the courage to share that work with the world. Every exhibition, residency, publication, or international showcase begins with one simple step: submitting an application. It may seem like a small action, but it has the power to introduce your work to new audiences, open unexpected doors, and become the starting point of your next opportunity.
It’s easy to assume that these opportunities are reserved for established artists or those with years of experience behind them. In reality, many open calls are created to discover fresh voices, emerging talent, and artists who are simply willing to put their work forward. Still, hesitation gets in the way. Questions like “Is my portfolio good enough?”, “What if I don’t get selected?”, or “Maybe I’ll apply next time” stop many artists before their work is ever seen.
The truth is, there is no perfect moment to start applying. Every artist, no matter where they are today, was once a first time applicant. Every submission, whether successful or not, teaches you something. It helps you refine your portfolio, strengthen your artist statement, understand what jurors are looking for, and build the confidence that comes from consistently putting yourself and your work out into the world. Sometimes the greatest reward is not an acceptance letter, but the momentum you gain simply by taking that first step.
If you’ve been waiting for the right opportunity, consider this your sign to start. All three open calls featured below have submission deadlines in August, 2026, so don’t wait until the final few days. Give yourself enough time to review your portfolio, polish your application materials, and submit before these opportunities close. Your next exhibition, feature, or career milestone could begin with one application.
Below are three international open calls currently welcoming submissions from women artists, each offering a chance to share your work with new audiences, gain meaningful exposure, and take the next step in your creative journey.
1. Women Who Print – Fall 2026: An Open Call by Mari Art Collective
If printmaking is at the heart of your artistic practice, this is one opportunity you won’t want to miss.
Mari Art Collective is currently accepting submissions for Women Who Print – Fall 2026, an international online exhibition dedicated to celebrating women artists who are shaping the future of contemporary printmaking. Open to women artists worldwide, the exhibition welcomes a broad spectrum of print-based practices, creating space for both traditional techniques and innovative experimental approaches.
Printmaking has long occupied a unique place within the art world. It exists somewhere between process and repetition, craftsmanship and experimentation, graphic arts and fine art. More than just a medium, it is a way of thinking, one that embraces exploration, texture, layers, and storytelling. This open call recognizes that diversity by inviting artists working across a wide range of printmaking methods, including relief, intaglio, lithography, screen-printing, monotype, cyanotype, collagraph, photopolymer, and mixed-media or experimental print practices.
Rather than focusing on a single theme, the open call celebrates the many ways women artists engage with printmaking today. According to the exhibition’s curatorial vision, the selected works will come together to create a collective portrait of contemporary printmaking, highlighting the different perspectives, techniques, and creative voices shaping the medium around the world. It’s an opportunity to contribute to a thoughtfully curated exhibition that values process and experimentation just as much as the finished artwork.
The exhibition will be juried by Lindsey Frances Jones, a multidisciplinary artist and the founder of Mari Art Collective. Working across painting, printmaking, sculpture, illustration, and social practice, Jones established the collective as an online platform dedicated to elevating women artists working on and with paper. Her experience across multiple disciplines brings a thoughtful perspective to this year’s selection process.
Details of the Open Call
Organizer: Mari Art Collective
Who can apply?
Women artists worldwide working in printmaking or print-based practices can apply to the open call.
Accepted media:
Relief, intaglio, lithography, screen-printing, monotype, cyanotype, collagraph, photopolymer, and experimental or mixed-media printmaking.
Submission limit:
Up to three artworks.
Entry fee:
$15 per artist.
Submission deadline:
August 15, 2026
Exhibition dates:
September 2026 through December 2026. After the exhibition concludes, it will remain online as a permanent digital archive, allowing artists’ work to continue reaching audiences beyond the official exhibition period.
Before You Apply
Before submitting your work, take a moment to review your portfolio as a whole. Rather than selecting three unrelated prints, consider choosing works that reflect a consistent artistic voice or explore a connected idea. A cohesive submission often tells a stronger story and gives jurors a clearer understanding of your practice. Make sure your images are high quality, your artwork details are accurate, and your artist statement offers a concise introduction to your creative process.
Whether you’re looking to introduce your work to a wider international audience, connect with a community of fellow printmakers, or add a professionally juried exhibition to your artistic résumé, Women Who Print – Fall 2026 offers an inspiring platform to showcase your practice and celebrate the evolving possibilities of contemporary printmaking.
2. Art & Woman: Edition 4 – An Open Call by Arts to Hearts Project
Some opportunities ask you to create work around a specific theme. Others ask you to submit your strongest pieces. Art & Woman: Edition 4 takes a different approach, it asks you to share the story behind your creative practice.
Organized by Arts to Hearts Project, this international open call invites women and non-binary artists from around the world to become part of the fourth edition of its signature publishing series, Art & Woman. More than an art book, the series is a storytelling-driven publication that celebrates both the artwork and the lived experiences behind it, creating a lasting archive of contemporary women artists.
Since its launch in 2024, the series has featured more than 300 artists across its first three editions, bringing together creators from diverse cultures, artistic practices, and career stages. Each volume serves as a record of women’s creativity, offering readers an opportunity to discover emerging talents alongside established artists while learning about the personal journeys that shape their work.
Unlike many publication opportunities, Art & Woman isn’t built around a single visual theme. Instead, it celebrates authenticity. Whether your work explores identity, memory, family, belonging, resilience, healing, joy, transformation, culture, or the quiet moments that define everyday life, the focus is on sharing art that genuinely reflects your voice as an artist. The publication welcomes original works across all visual mediums, including painting, photography, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, illustration, mixed media, installation, digital art, and experimental practices.
This year’s edition will be curated by Liz Lidgett, an internationally recognized art advisor, gallery owner, author, and founder of Liz Lidgett Gallery and Design. Known for championing emerging and mid-career artists while making art more accessible to collectors, she brings a thoughtful curatorial perspective and a deep appreciation for authentic storytelling in contemporary art.
All You Need to Know
Organizer: Arts to Hearts Project
Who can apply?
Women and non-binary artists aged 18 and above from anywhere in the world can apply to the open call.
Accepted media:
All visual art mediums, including painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, ceramics, textile art, mixed media, digital art, installation, illustration, and more.
Submission deadline:
August 30, 2026
What selected artists receive:
• Publication in Art & Woman: Edition 4, distributed internationally through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the Arts to Hearts Project Shop.
• An Official Certificate of Publication & Recognition.
• Written remarks on the selected work from Guest Curator Liz Lidgett and the jury.
• Editorial promotion across Arts to Hearts Project’s website, newsletter, and social media platforms.
• The Top Winner receives a USD 500 cash award, a four-page editorial feature, a professionally written interview, an engraved crystal trophy, and extensive international promotion. Runner-up awards also include publication, editorial features, trophies, and promotional opportunities.
Before You Apply
Choose artworks that feel the most authentic to your artistic journey rather than trying to guess what jurors want to see. Since this publication is built around personal stories, your artist statement matters just as much as the images you submit. Take the time to reflect on the experiences, ideas, or emotions behind your work, and let that voice come through naturally. A genuine story paired with strong artwork often leaves a far more lasting impression than simply submitting technically accomplished pieces.
Whether you’re looking to be published internationally for the first time or add another milestone to your creative career, Art & Woman: Edition 4 offers more than visibility. It offers the chance to become part of a growing global archive dedicated to celebrating the stories, perspectives, and creative voices of women artists around the world.
3. In Full View: An Open Call by Woman Made Gallery
Art doesn’t have an expiration date, and neither does creativity. Yet older artists are often overlooked in conversations about contemporary art, despite bringing decades of experience, perspective, and artistic evolution to their practice. In Full View, an open call by Woman Made Gallery, challenges that narrative by celebrating the voices of women and non-binary artists aged 65 and older.
The exhibition was inspired by experiences many older artists know all too well, being told they’re “too old” to pursue something new or hearing comments like, “You look great for your age,” as though creativity has an age limit. Rather than accepting those assumptions, In Full View creates space for artists to reclaim visibility and share work that reflects the richness of a fully lived life.
Open to all visual art mediums, the exhibition invites submissions exploring themes of visibility and invisibility, identity, aging, memory, resilience, and legacy. Artists are encouraged to reflect on what it means to be seen, overlooked, remembered, or rediscovered, and how these experiences continue to shape both their lives and their creative practice. The result promises to be a thoughtful collection of artworks that celebrates not only artistic excellence but also the wisdom, insight, and cultural contributions that come with time.
This year’s exhibition will be juried by Jerri Zbiral, whose career has spanned more than four decades across photography, filmmaking, teaching, curating, writing, and art appraisal. Alongside an extensive exhibition record of her own work, she has authored numerous publications on photography, produced award-winning documentary films, and worked with major collectors and institutions through The Collected Image. Her diverse experience brings a thoughtful and informed perspective to this year’s selection process.
Application Details
Organizer: Woman Made Gallery
Who can apply?
Women and non-binary artists aged 65 and older can apply to the open call.
Theme:
Visibility, invisibility, identity, aging, memory, resilience, and the legacy of a fully lived life.
Accepted media:
All visual art mediums. Submitted work must be original and created without the primary use of AI image-generation tools.
Submission limit:
Submit 1–3 artworks, with a maximum of 2 entries per artist.
Entry fee:
$24.60
Submission deadline:
August 12, 2026
Exhibition dates:
October 10 – November 7, 2026
Before You Apply
This exhibition isn’t looking for work that simply illustrates the idea of aging. Instead, think about the experiences that have shaped your artistic voice over the years. Perhaps your work reflects personal history, changing identity, resilience, family, memory, or the lessons that only time can teach. Choose pieces that feel honest and deeply personal, and make sure your artist statement helps connect those experiences with the work you’ve chosen to submit.
In Full View is more than an exhibition, it’s a celebration of artists whose creativity continues to grow, evolve, and inspire. By creating space for women and non-binary artists over 65, Woman Made Gallery reminds us that some of the most compelling artistic voices are those shaped by a lifetime of making, reflecting, and continuing to create.
Your Next Opportunity Might Be One Application Away
Every artist’s journey is built one opportunity at a time. A publication can introduce your work to new audiences, an exhibition can place your art alongside inspiring peers, and a thoughtfully curated open call can lead to connections that shape the next chapter of your creative career. The three opportunities featured here each offer something different, from celebrating the evolving practice of printmaking and preserving women’s artistic stories in an international publication to creating space for voices that deserve greater visibility. More importantly, they remind us that there isn’t just one path to being seen as an artist.
If one of these open calls resonates with your practice, don’t let self-doubt become the reason you never apply. You don’t need to have the “perfect” portfolio or wait for the “right” time. Read the guidelines carefully, choose work that genuinely represents your artistic voice, and trust that your perspective deserves to be part of the conversation. Every submission is a chance to share your work, grow professionally, and put yourself in front of curators, publishers, and creative communities that may never have discovered you otherwise.
Whether you’re submitting your first application or your fiftieth, remember that opportunities only become milestones when you decide to take the first step. Your next exhibition, publication, or career breakthrough could begin with something as simple as clicking Submit.
