Call for entry

A curated international photography exhibition

Submission deadlines:

• Early bird deadline: December 6, 2021
• Final deadline: December 14, 2021

Notification: All entrants will be notified 10-15 days after the final deadline.

Exhibition dates: February 10 – March 5, 2022

Portrayals of femininity and masculinity are, without doubt, central to a number of art forms, photography not being an exception. The past few decades have given rise to – often heated – discussions and criticisms of past, recent, and current photographic practices for their lack of reflection on the assumptions, stereotypes, and prejudices surrounding photographic approaches to femininity and masculinity. Fine art and commercial works alike have been critiqued for the potential consequences of their approach and presentation. Historically femininity and masculinity have been conceived, among others, as oppositions, as complements of each other, or as positions on a continuum. There are hardly any ways of portraying femininity and masculinity that would or could not be considered trivial, conservative, pretentious, demeaning, distasteful, clichéd or even offensive by some. It often seems that everything has been both said and photographed about this subject, and yet, it is not possible to ignore the persistence of the theme in our contemporary visual culture. What is it that we can still value and possibly revive from the rich history of photography; are there any novel ways left to approach this subject with a fresh critical eye?

PH21 Gallery invites photographers to submit their work for a group exhibition themed Feminine / Masculine. We are looking for submissions from all photographers who are interested in this subject and would like to share their work with a wider international audience through the exposure of PH21 Gallery. The theme is broadly construed, as the photographic portrayal of femininity and masculinity is independent of generic or stylistic constraints. Indeed, we are interested in all possible creative photographic interpretations of the theme.

One curator’s choice and up to three honourable mentions will be announced. The juror’s choice receives three free entries for any upcoming themed group exhibition calls at PH21 Gallery. (Each free entry includes up to 15 images.)

Curators: Zsolt Bátori and Borbála Jász

Zsolt is a philosopher of art and photographer. He is an associate professor at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics and at Kodolányi János University, where he currently serves as Head of the Research Centre for Art and Creative Industries. He visits the University of Murcia in Spain for regular research collaborations. He has conducted research and taught philosophy of art and photography courses at various universities in Hungary, the United States, Spain and Argentina, and has exhibited his photographic work internationally. Zsolt is also the founder and director of PH21 Gallery.

Borbála is an art historian and a philosopher of art. She works as a researcher at the Institute of Philosophy, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and as an assistant professor at Budapest University of Technology and Economics. She is responsible for the operations of our new Project Room at Ráday 52, and she also works with our social media accounts and website.

​Further information: ph21gallery.com