Things We Feel: Our New Open Call Is Now Open for Submissions

Some feelings arrive quietly. Others take over an entire room. 

A memory that suddenly comes back when you see a certain colour. The feeling of missing someone without quite knowing why. The comfort of a familiar place. The excitement of beginning again. Grief, joy, longing, anger, tenderness, fear, hope,  sometimes an entire story can live inside a feeling that is almost impossible to put into words. And this is exactly where art has always had something special to offer.

Art can say what language cannot. A painting can hold a memory. A photograph can capture longing. A sculpture can make us feel something before we even understand what we are looking at. An abstract work can communicate an emotion without showing us anything we can name.

That is why our newest open call at Women in Arts Network is all about The Things We Feel.

But this time, we also want to talk about something bigger: where exhibitions are going, who gets to be part of them, and how artists can share their work with audiences far beyond the walls of a traditional gallery.

Why Virtual Exhibitions Are Becoming So Important

For a long time, when we imagined an art exhibition, we imagined a physical space. White walls. A gallery opening. A group of artists. Visitors walking from one room to another.

And those exhibitions still matter enormously. But the way people discover and experience art has changed.

Today, an artist can be working in London, Nairobi, New York, Melbourne or a tiny studio somewhere in between, and their work can be seen by someone on the other side of the world.

That is one of the most exciting things about virtual exhibitions. They remove some of the physical boundaries that have traditionally surrounded the art world.

A virtual exhibition can be accessed from anywhere. It can introduce artists to audiences they may never have reached through their local exhibition circuit. It gives someone who cannot travel to a gallery the chance to encounter new work. And for emerging artists especially, it can become another meaningful piece of their exhibition history.

It doesn’t replace the experience of standing in front of an artwork. It simply creates another door into the art world. And we think artists should have as many doors as possible.

This Is Why Women in Arts Keeps Creating Them

At Women in Arts Network, virtual exhibitions have become an important part of what we do.

Over the past two years, we have presented more than 15 international exhibitions featuring over 800 artists from around the world. Each one has brought together artists responding to a shared theme in completely different ways.

Our Exhibition Life, Love & Everything She Creates is live now. Explore beautiful work from 50 women artists, each contributing a unique perspective to the theme and making the exhibition come to life.

That is what we love about the format. A theme gives artists a starting point, but it doesn’t tell them what the final artwork has to look like.

One artist might respond to it through painting. Another through photography. Someone else might use textiles, sculpture, digital art, collage or mixed media. The result is never just a collection of artworks about one subject. It becomes a conversation between different artists, experiences, cultures and ways of seeing. And that is exactly what we hope The Things We Feel will become.

Introducing: The Things We Feel

Our newest international virtual exhibition asks a simple question: What do you feel?

The answer can be anything. Your work might explore love, joy, grief, longing, fear, nostalgia, belonging, vulnerability, desire, solitude, hope, anger, comfort, connection or transformation.

But it doesn’t have to literally show emotion. Maybe your painting comes from a particular memory. Maybe your photograph captures a moment you couldn’t forget. Maybe your sculpture is about something you have carried with you for years. Maybe your abstract work expresses a feeling you could never name. Or maybe you simply want to make something that makes someone else feel.

That is the beauty of this theme. It is intentionally open. We are interested in the feeling behind the work just as much as the feeling represented within it.

Every Submission Will Be Carefully Reviewed 

Every submission to The Things We Feel will go through a juried selection process.

This means submitting does not automatically guarantee inclusion in the exhibition. The selection panel will review the work based on factors including artistic quality, originality, technical execution, relevance to the theme and overall presentation.

We think this is important. A virtual exhibition should not simply be a place where every submission appears. It should feel curated. It should bring together works that create an interesting visual and emotional conversation.

So if you submit, think about the work you are sending. What does it say? What does it make you feel? Why does it belong in The Things We Feel? Sometimes the most powerful interpretation of a theme isn’t the most obvious one.

Who Can Submit?

If you are a woman artist or non-binary artist aged 18 or above, you can apply from anywhere in the world.

And you do not need to have an impressive exhibition history already. Whether you are an emerging artist submitting to your first international opportunity or an established artist with years of experience, you are welcome to take part.

We are also keeping the door wide open when it comes to medium. Painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, illustration, digital art, collage, textiles, mixed media, video, installation and other contemporary visual practices are all welcome.

The important thing is your interpretation.

So, What Is In It for Artists?

Being selected for a virtual exhibition is about more than seeing your work appear online. Selected artists will become part of an international curated exhibition hosted by Women in Arts Network, accessible to audiences around the world.

You will also be able to add the exhibition to your artist CV, website, portfolio and exhibition history. Your work will be professionally presented alongside other selected artists, giving you another opportunity to introduce your practice to people who may not have encountered it before. Selected artists will also receive a digital certificate of participation.

And for emerging artists, that experience can be particularly valuable.

Building an exhibition history takes time. Every opportunity that allows you to present your work professionally, participate in a curated show and reach a new audience can become part of that journey.

Want to Tell Us More About Your Work?

There is also an optional Artist Interview Feature for artists who want to go beyond showing the artwork itself.

If selected and you choose the add-on, you will receive a dedicated interview published on the Women in Arts Network website. It is a chance to talk about your artistic journey, inspirations, creative process and the stories behind your work. The feature is also promoted across Women in Arts Network’s digital platforms.

Because sometimes an artwork is only the beginning of the conversation. We want to know what brought you there.

How to Submit

The process is simple. You can submit up to three artworks responding to the theme The Things We Feel.

The Virtual Exhibition submission fee is $15 USD. If you would also like to be considered for the Artist Interview Feature, the combined option is $34 USD ($15 for the exhibition + $19 for the interview add-on).

Once your application is submitted, your work will go through the juried selection process. Selected artists will be contacted by email after the review period.

The Important Dates

Submission Deadline: October 5, 2026

Selection Notification: Within three weeks of the deadline

Virtual Exhibition Launch: Approximately one month after selected artists are announced.

What Does This Theme Mean to You? 

This might be our favourite question to end on. Because art doesn’t always have to explain itself. Sometimes it just has to make us pause.

Maybe your work reminds someone of home. Maybe it brings back a person they haven’t thought about in years. Maybe it makes them smile, feel uncomfortable, feel understood or simply stay with the image for a little longer than they expected.

We all carry things we cannot always put into words. And artists have this wonderful ability to give those invisible things a shape, a colour, a texture, a face or a place to live.

The Things We Feel is an invitation to do exactly that.

Bring us the memory. The joy. The ache. The tenderness. The uncertainty. The feeling you can explain perfectly, or the one you still don’t have a name for. We want to see what happens when you turn it into art.

Submissions are now open. We can’t wait to see how you put the things you feel into your art.