Art Worlds articles share practical advice on the realities of operating in the art world.
We’re inviting proposals for articles that offer insights on being an artist from diverse lived experiences. A central focus is how to develop and maintain a sustainable career.
We want to hear:
- Your experiences on the business of being an artist
- The advice you would pass on the next generation of artists
- From artists that identify as being marginalised in the arts
- How you have overcome the practical and philosophical challenges you face in sustaining your career
- Everyday ways in which you manage to keep making work
- About your lived experience of balancing your artistic practice, parenthood and/or any care giving responsibilities
- How you navigate the art world without having attended higher education
- Your views on developing a sustainable practice in response to the climate emergency
In return, we offer up to £250 per article, display up to 4 images/audio/film of your work, and promote your current projects on our Twitter network and email newsletter. To apply, you must be a practising visual artist anywhere in the world and a member of Exchange.
Articles can take the form of a 500 word text, video or audio piece. We publish a new article once every 2 months. Unfortunately, we can’t accept every pitch we receive. We intend to let applicants know the outcome of their proposal within 1 month.
We encourage applications from individuals who identify as part of underrepresented or marginalised groups and artists with lived experience of inequality, disadvantage and/or discrimination.
Current Open Call
Value is a term that is often discussed in relation to the financial worth of artworks, yet artists create many different forms of value through their practices. Artistic work can generate cultural, social, public, educational and economic value, but artists are not always recognised, paid or compensated for the value they create.
For this Art Worlds call for proposals, we would like to commission at least one artist to contribute a written article, video, or audio piece exploring what value means within their practice and experience as an artist.
We invite proposals that reflect on the value your work creates, the value you aspire for it to have, and the factors that shape, influence or determine that value. We are interested in personal perspectives, critical reflections and lived experiences.
Your proposal might consider questions such as:
- How do you identify and articulate the value created through your work?
- Do you struggle to define or communicate the value of your artistic practice?
- Are you appropriately paid or compensated for the value you create? Why or why not?
- What forms of value exist beyond financial value?
- How do audiences, institutions, communities or markets influence perceptions of value?
- Does acknowledging the value of your work affect your practice, opportunities or sense of purpose?
- What kinds of value do you hope your work generates, and for whom?
Deadline: 10am, 14 september, 2026
We welcome proposals from artists working in any medium and encourage diverse perspectives on the relationship between artistic practice and value.
If you have any questions or need further assistance with this application, email Tom Pope.