Call for Pitches: SWC Vol 9: Living Histories
Some histories are cast in bronze, frozen in time, memorialized for posterity. Some are transmitted through spoken stories, living on in the memories of those who hear them.
This issue of Southwest Contemporary delves into the past to reveal the workings of the present. What underground vaults, undertold stories, and obscured narratives can we bring to light? Who are the record keepers, the archivists, the knowledge holders? How have histories been kept and cherished, or suppressed and erased? What do we commemorate, what do we forget?
We want to reassess what we know and what we’ve heard, to seek perspectives on figures that are vaunted and those that have been toppled. We want to hear from artists with long and storied careers, and from witnesses of art scenes that have come and gone. We want to hear from docents of obscure histories and archives. We want to hear about places and objects that hold keys to the past, that we might better understand our place in the present and where we will go in the future.
Some ideas for pitches:
- Profile of an artist with long ties to the region who has been underrecognized
- Creative essay about a place or site of historical significance
- Close views of objects, archives, or collections
- Interview with a “history keeper” or “memory keeper” for a particular place or art scene
- Fresh take or new perspective on an already established art history
- Essay on public monuments and how memorials can obscure other histories/lived realities
- Essay on a topic that stretches our view of history, e.g. geologic time, alternative histories
We are generally looking for articles that fall under these formats:
- Creative essays
- Studio visits / artist profiles
- Interviews
- Cultural criticism
- Short fiction
- Experimental text-based works
- Food and drink / travel
- Exhibition Reviews (do not need to adhere thematically)
Deadline for print pitches: September 25.
Deadline for drafts: November 27- December 18 (reviews January 8).
Published: March 1.
Articles accepted for print will be paid according to length/type of article (short feature, full-length feature, review, etc), with the fee agreed upon at the time of commission.
Email your pitch by September 25 to natalie@southwestcontemporary.com.
