Calling Women Artists! Submissions Open for Our International Virtual Exhibition- Theme: Faces

Have you ever paused to really look into a face yours, or someone else’s and felt the weight of a thousand untold stories looking back at you? The Women in Arts Network now brings you another extraordinary opportunity to share your creativity and your story with the world, through the theme of “Faces.” Faces are perhaps the most familiar things we see every day, and yet, they remain endlessly mysterious. They are both what we show and what we hide. They can invite you in or keep you at a distance. A face can be a reflection of the soul, a mask of protection, or a landscape carved by time. Through centuries, cultures, and traditions, faces have held meaning as symbols of identity, emotion, memory, and transformation. They speak a language beyond words, one that changes with every glance, every shadow, every light that touches the skin.

When you see a face, what do you notice first? The eyes that hold a story? The lines that map a lifetime? Or the silence between expressions That space where emotion breathes? When you look in the mirror, do you see yourself as you are, or as you were, or as you wish to be? And when you encounter another’s face in art, in life, in passing do you feel connection, curiosity, compassion, or something else entirely? This exhibition invites you to explore these questions, and to translate them into form, colour, texture, and light to let your art speak where words may falter.

Why the Theme Faces?

Faces have always fascinated us they are portraits of humanity itself. In ancient myths and modern portraits alike, they carry the stories of who we’ve been and who we are becoming. They are the symbols of recognition, of empathy, of individuality and shared existence. Across cultures, faces have represented gods and ancestors, heroes and loved ones. In every brushstroke, every photograph, every sculpture of a face, there is an echo of connection the reminder that to be seen is to exist, and to see another is to honour their being.

But beyond their form, faces also hold metaphor. For artists, they can become a way to explore identity, belonging, truth, and change. What do faces mean in your own story? Are they fragments of memory, or symbols of the masks you’ve worn? Do they carry heritage and history, or whisper of transformation and renewal? Are they literal painted, drawn, sculpted or do they emerge abstractly, as shapes, colours, or rhythms that mirror the complexity of emotion itself?

This open call is not simply about depicting a face but about discovering what it reveals and what it conceals. Perhaps you will find that in painting another, you discover yourself. Or perhaps you’ll realize that faces are not just features they are experiences, moments, mirrors. However you choose to interpret this theme, your work can spark reflection in those who encounter it connecting them to something deeply human and timeless.

What Can You Create?

Your interpretation of “Faces” can be literal, abstract, or somewhere in between. Perhaps it is:

• A portrait that captures a fleeting emotion or a deep story
• An abstracted or symbolic representation of identity, memory, or belonging
• Faces emerging through textures, patterns, or unusual forms
• A reflection of someone you love, a stranger, or even yourself

Ask yourself: What story does this face tell? How does it connect to memory, heritage, or emotion? How do your own experiences and identity shape the faces you create? What do you hope your viewers feel when they encounter your work? The beauty of this theme lies in its universality, yet every submission will reflect a unique journey, a perspective that is entirely your own.

Who Can Submit to This International Art Call?

• Women-identifying and non-binary artists
• 18+ years old
• Open worldwide, artists from every culture and background are welcome
• All mediums accepted: painting, drawing, photography, digital, textile, sculpture, mixed media, and more

This opportunity is for every artist, from those just starting their creative journey to those already established.

What Will You Get?

If your work is selected, it will be showcased in our Virtual Exhibition, a global digital gallery connecting artists, curators, and art lovers from around the world. This is more than a showcase it’s a conversation across cultures and disciplines. Selected artists will also have the optional opportunity to be featured in an exclusive Artist Interview, where they can share their inspirations, processes, and personal stories behind their work. These interviews will be published on the Women in Arts Network’s website and amplified across its social platforms, giving your creative voice an international reach.

This is your opportunity not just to display your art, but to share your journey to speak of the emotions, memories, and reflections that shaped your creative vision. Your art might be the mirror in which someone else recognizes themselves.

How to Apply?

We understand that even the most passionate artists can stumble at the paperwork, so we’ve made the process simple and stress-free.

1. Visit the submission form on the Women in Arts Network website.
2. Fill in your basic details name, email, and short artist bio or statement.
3. Upload a clear headshot (no selfies, please).
4. Submit 1–3 artworks with full details (title, medium, size, year).
5. Decide if you’d like to be considered for the optional Artist Interview in addition to the exhibition
   

Your submission should resonate with the theme “Faces”, but the interpretation is entirely yours — literal or abstract, emotional or symbolic. Let your art reflect how you see, remember, and imagine faces in your world.

If you need help with your artist statement or formatting your images, our team is here to guide you through every step of the process.

Participation Fees

• Virtual Exhibition: $3 (1$ Per Image)
• Artist Interview Add-On: $12 (optional)

We are transparent about this fee; it’s non-refundable and only applies if you select the interview option.

Things To Remember

• Submission Deadline: November 25, 2025
• Selection Notification: Within three weeks after the deadline
• Virtual Exhibition Launch: One month after the selected artists are announced

Your submission will be reviewed by a professional jury, ensuring a fair and thoughtful selection process.

What Do Faces Mean in Your Story?

Faces are witnesses to life they carry the fleeting and the eternal, the joy and the grief, the strength and the fragility. They remind us that every story, every emotion, every connection matters. Perhaps, for you, a face represents the comfort of familiarity, or the ache of distance. Maybe it’s a symbol of resilience, or a question about identity. Maybe it’s the echo of someone you’ve lost, or the reflection of someone you’re becoming.

When you create, do you seek to capture truth or to express how truth feels? When you shape, draw, photograph, or imagine a face, what part of yourself do you reveal? What stories do you invite others to see?

This exhibition is your chance to explore these questions to bring faces to life not just in form, but in feeling. Through your art, you can remind the world that every face, no matter how different, belongs to the same vast and beautiful story of humanity.

Submit your work today and let your vision of “Faces” speak for you, for others, for all of us.