"strip/shift" art exhibition for berlin-based artists

We are excited to announce an open call for submissions to "Strip / Shift," an upcoming art exhibition in Berlin in April 2025 for Berlin-based artists. As artists focused on social issues, empowerment, and marginalised communities, your voices are crucial to this exploration of the nuanced realities of stigmatised professions like stripping and sex work. This exhibition will challenge societal perceptions, foster critical dialogue, and amplify your voices.

Concept & Objective

Strip / Shift seeks to examine societal attitudes towards marginalised and misunderstood professions. With a dual focus, the exhibition will explore:

1. Choice vs. Coercion: When these professions are freely chosen, how can society embrace and respect them? When they are forced due to economic or social pressures, what can be done to prevent exploitation and provide support?
2. Empowerment & Misogyny: As artists, we invite you to explore why such roles face heavy stigmatisation in an era that claims to be increasingly sex-positive. Your works can help us understand and challenge these societal attitudes.
3. Trans Narratives: Highlighting the unique struggles, fears, and resilience of trans sex workers within these spaces.

Through photography, video art, and performance, Strip / Shift aims to challenge stereotypes, raise awareness of systemic issues, and advocate for dignity and rights for workers in these fields.

Submission Guidelines

We are seeking works in the following mediums:

1. Photography: Projects that visually narrate empowerment, struggle, or societal perceptions.
2. Video Art: Explorations of stigma, identity, and the duality of choice versus coercion.
3. Performance Art: Live or recorded performances addressing empowerment, misogyny, and resilience.

Themes to Explore

1. Female empowerment
2. Societal perceptions of stripping and sex work
3. Misogyny within these industries
4. Struggle and fear of trans sex workers
5. The balance between choice and coercion

Details & Deadline

1. Exhibition Dates: to be announced
2. Venue: Berlin, in a strip club setting during closing hours
3. Duration: One week
4. Deadline for Submissions: 15.03.2025

How to Submit

Please send us your submission using the online form

with the subject line: "Strip / Shift Open Call Submission." Include the following:

1. Artist statement (max. 300 words)
2. Description of the submitted work (title, medium, year, size, price and how it connects to the themes)
3. High-res images or links to your work (for video or performance submissions) (please name each image or link)
4. Bio (min. 200 words)
5. CV (optional)

We welcome submissions from both emerging and established artists. This exhibition is a platform for amplifying voices, breaking down stigmas, and sparking change.

Let's strip away assumptions and shift perspectives together.

For inquiries, please contact us at curationbygeorgina@gmail.com.