April Open Call: Focus

Our April Open Call, “Focus" has been created by our 34 Gallery Staff to explore the impact of maintaining mental stability while managing external triggers amid internal upheaval.  This month, we are particularly interested in works by artists utilizing this art therapy open call to address:  ADHD, CDD, Autism, Anxiety, Dissociative Disorders, PTSD, Substance Abuse Recovery, TBI & Chronic Illness.

Themes: As artists, we already know focus is vital to completing our work. The weight of deadlines and lack of support for our craft can feel crushing. But we keep going. This month, we ask you to channel this energy into providing focus for those struggling to find theirs. Each of the conditions covered in this Open Call takes a toll on human life:

• More than 50% of adolescents with ADHD/CDD report suicidal ideation. Among adults, more than 33%.
• Over 70% of individuals with a history of suicide attempts have an anxiety disorder. 
• Individuals with Dissociative Disorders often have up to 3 suicide attempts in their lifetime.
• A TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) diagnosis doubles the suicide risk for those living with this condition.
• Individuals with PTSD, in Substance Abuse Recovery or living with Chronic Illness are up to six times more likely to successfully commit suicide. 

For 2026, Artists are invited to explore what focus means. Delve into the calm within the anxious onslaught. Explore personal talismans that banish mental fog. Seek out the clarity through the earthquake of PTSD. Remind us why illness does not define who you are. Authenticate the experience of refusing to be labeled "damaged" in a world creating scars. Show us what Focus means to you.

Please Note: As a Mental Health Art Gallery, we are asking Creatives to mobilize to help save lives. Someone seeing your work this year can be inspired to keep going with hope and resilience despite their mental health struggles. Your artistic advocacy with us can and will make a difference!

Requirements: Open Medium. Fine Art, Poetry, Audiovisual, Short Film & A.I. Artwork Accepted. Submit up to 3 artworks or poems  by March 27th. Include the following questions in your cover letter: 

• Your artist name, artwork titles, and website/social media links.  
• 1 - 2 paragraphs describing the creative process regarding your work & how it fits with the Open Call Theme. 

• 1 - 2 paragraphs on your experience of maintaining focus through triggers, coping with a diagnosis, and/or living with symptoms that impede your everyday reality.

Selected artists will be notified by April 10th. 

Restrictions: 

• Be advised that this open call also includes a global youth & adult audience. 
• Works that are sexually graphic and/or advocate violence (self or others), discrimination, or hatred (societal/gender/religious/cultural) of any kind will be disqualified.
• File Type: .MP4, .JPG, .PNG --File Size: Up to 100 MB for art & audiovisual submissions; Word, Google Docs, .PDF for poetry.