Gathering: Stories Told by Hand
Announcement
Participants in the Lansing Collage Club are invited to submit one work of art for our spring show at Hooked in Lansing, which will run March 10th-April 14th, 2027. Regular attendees will be given priority entry, however members of the public are invited to submit if this medium and theme interest you. There is no fee to submit.
This year’s theme has been developed in collaboration with Mahbube Parnian, third-year MFA candidate in Studio Art at Michigan State University. Mahbube’s work investigates the nature of identity during artistic collaborations, handmade, process-focused artwork, and the ways that women share knowledge and collectively heal through gathering together in making.
Theme
Parnian’s interests are in cosmic alignment with the aims and realities of the Lansing Collage Club, a place that provides a steady rhythm of lowkey communal activity, and a space that (I hope) is welcoming, tender, social, and relaxed. It is lighthearted, loud, and crowded. It can also be profound! This energetic force of the club is what artists are encouraged to explore in their work.
Some ideas to guide you:
- Hands: Your own or other people’s. Images of hands or shapes/outlines.
- Identity: Printing your own collage material or using images that specifically explore your identity and culture.
- Gathering: Representations of togetherness, different ways we gather.
- Trans-inclusive women’s identities: The universal anxiety around our collective power.
- Craft Clubs: Chill hangs, spaces that are not coded as “artistic” or “important.”
Three winners will receive written comments from Parnian and prizes from the club as follows:
- 1st Place: $100 Cash
- 2nd place: $50 Cash
- Wildcard: $30 Giftcard to Hooked
Dates
November 9th: Show Announced
November 30th – February 1st: Submissions Open
February 14th: Confirmation email sent to artists
February 28th: Art Drop-Off
March 10th: Opening Reception
April 14th: Deinstallation/Pickup artwork during regular April Collage Club
Logistics
- Artwork must be wired for hanging. Either a canvas or framed, 2D art is fine.
- Please limit the size of your work to under 16×16” to ensure we can have space for as many artists as possible.
- Art MUST be dropped off and picked up on the dates above. If you cannot be there, you must arrange something with a friend.
- Upon acceptance of your work into the show, you agree that I can use images of your work on social media, in my collage club newsletter, and in future curatorial proposals or show announcements. I will never misrepresent your work as my own.
- Important: If you choose to list your work for sale, your email address and/or IG handle will be listed on a label next to your work. Hooked will NOT sell your work for you.
Note on Artificial Intelligence
It’s unlikely that work made utilizing AI will be thematically sound, glorious, and intensely provoking enough to warrant exhibition alongside the work of our club artists. However, I am open to reviewing work that transparently experiments with AI in a legitimate and intelligent exploration of our show’s theme. The bar is sky high and acceptance is unlikely.
