CALL FOR ENTRY | DEADLINE:
July 31, 2026 by 11:59pm EST
ROY G BIV Gallery invites you to apply to exhibit work in ImageOHIO in conjunction with FotoFocus Biennial, a juried exhibition of compelling lens-based art by emerging artists working in the Ohio region and beyond. Lens-based work can include photography, new media, film, and video. The invited artists’ work will be exhibited at ROY G BIV Gallery in Columbus’ Franklinton Arts District from October 9 – November 6, 2026.
ROY G BIV’s highest priority is to support emerging artists. We define emerging artists as those who are early in their careers, do not have gallery representation, and have yet to be substantially celebrated within their field, by the media, by funding organizations, or the public at large. We expect artists exhibiting at ROY G BIV to be actively creating new work, and to have a focused direction while developing their artistic vision.
ROY G BIV presents the ImageOHIO 2026 theme:
Franklinton Across Time: The Floodplain Imagination. Franklinton– one of Columbus's earliest neighborhoods– embodies a microcosm of urban evolution: indigenous displacement, early settlement, flood destruction, redlining, abandonment, and now, art-led redevelopment and gentrification. This project examines Franklinton as a living archive, mapping the changes in land, community, and culture across time. We ask artists to respond to this vibrant neighborhood or another place that evokes a sense of belonging and longing.
The exhibition will pair contemporary lens-based work with archival materials, interviews, and site-responsive installations to explore:
What has endured?
What has been erased or overwritten?
How do memory and history manifest visually in public and private space?
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Please read these instructions fully and carefully as incomplete submissions will not be juried.
1. To enter, become a member of ROY G BIV Gallery, or renew your membership at our website for a fee of $25. Your membership is valid for one calendar year from time of payment.2. Email your submission to info@roygbivgallery.org using the subject “ImageOHIO 2026” and include an artist statement, résumé and list of works. Your list of works must include title, date, medium, size, and price if applicable. Please ensure that the number listed corresponds to the image (e.g., 01.jpg must match “01” in your list of works.)
Please use the following format for the body text of your submission email:
Name (Required)
- First Name:
- Last Name:
Email (Required)
- Email Address:
Address
- Address 1:
- Address 2:
- City:
- State/Province:
- Zip/Postal Code:
Website:Instagram or other social media:
(Instagram is preferred for posting on ROY’s social media) -
Deadline for Submission: July 31, 11:59pm EST
Acceptance Notification: September 8
Work Drop-off: September 25,26,27 noon-6 pm
Opening Reception: October 9, 6-8pm
Work Pick-up: November 6,7,8 noon-6 pm -
➜ no more than 5 images
➜ File names: Use only a number (e.g., 01.jpg). Please do not embed your name in any image file names.
➜ File formats: JPEG or PNG
➜ File size: No larger than 1.5 MB per photo
➜ Detail and installation photos may be included with the 5 images
➜ Attach images to your email
➜ DO NOT send zipped files
➜ DO NOT embed files in the body of your email -
➜ no more than 2 videos, no longer than 4 minutes each
➜ For video submissions, upload your videos to Vimeo or YouTube and submit their URLs in your List of Works.
➜ It is not necessary to remove your name from your account or videos.
➜ Please make videos easily accessible to the jury; include an access code if needed.
➜ The first two minutes of each video will be reviewed. -
➜ File names: Please include your name on your Résumé, List of Works, and Artist Statement.
➜ File formats: PDF
➜ List of Works should include the following for each work:
1. File name (e.g.,01.jpg) or video URL (e.g., https://www.youtube.com)
2. Title
3. Year of completion
4. Medium(s)
5. Dimensions
➜ Attach files to your email
➜ DO NOT send zipped files
➜ DO NOT embed files in the body of your email -
ImageOHIO is open to photography, new media, video, and film.
Inclusion of artwork featuring explicit or violent content will be considered at the discretion of the gallery. Only accepted submissions will be contacted.
Artist is responsible for transportation of all artwork to and from ROY G BIV Gallery. If work must be shipped, the artist is responsible for packaging and shipping expenses. The gallery is unable to receive mailed packages. Artist is responsible for artwork installation and providing any speciality installation supplies. Two-dimensional work must be ready to hang and include appropriate hanging hardware. One projector is available on a first come first serve basis. Videos may be shown on a loop to accommodate multiple artists. Artist is responsible for providing any additional video monitors or equipment for installation work or videos not to be included in the loop.
MEET THE JURORS
Marcus Jackson is an award-winning poet and a visual artist whose poems and photographs have appeared in such publications as The American Poetry Review, The New Yorker, and The New York Times Magazine. His second book of poems, entitled Pardon My Heart (Northwestern University Press), was released in 2018. Jackson’s forthcoming book of street portraits and poems, Love’s Austere and Lonely Offices, will be out in June 2026. Jackson lives with his wife and child in Columbus, Ohio, and directs the creative writing MFA at Ohio State.
Claire Elyce Wiedman is an artist and photographic educator based in Columbus, OH. She holds a BA in Studio Art: Photography, a BA in Art History, an MA in Studio Art: Photography and Printmaking, all from the University of Saint Francis in Fort Wayne, IN, and an MFA in Visual Art: New Projects from Columbus College of Art & Design. She currently serves as an adjunct faculty for Columbus College of Art & Design and The Ohio State University at Newark. Claire's practice has recently shifted from object-based documentary to self-portrait. Previous work in documentary, and 3 years photographing museum objects as a collection manager, have led to photographing herself as a sculptural object.