Finding and Browsing Calls

Browse Calls for Artists is the public list of every open call on Crafted Call. You can search it, narrow it by what you make and where you are, follow the calls you are interested in, and have new matches emailed to you. This guide covers all of that, plus the ways in which the platform surfaces calls you have not gone looking for.

Browsing

The list opens on Active Calls, sorted by Deadline (soonest). A Past Calls tab beside it shows calls that have closed, which is worth a look when you are sizing up an organization you have not entered before.

Sort by offers three orders:

Deadline (soonest), the default
Newest posted
Fee (low to high)

The search box matches the call title, its description and the organization running it. It needs at least two characters and updates as you type.

Narrowing the list

Filters opens four groups, and tells you how many are active:

Medium / Category covers painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, photography, ceramics, fiber art, glass, digital art, video and film, installation, performance, mixed media and other. Tick as many as apply.
Location narrows by state.
Submission Fee offers Free, $1 - $25, $25 - $50 and $50+.
Deadline offers This week, This month and Next 3 months. It appears only on the active list, since a past call has no deadline left to filter by.

Clear all filters resets everything.

Every card shows how long is left: Closing today, 3 days left, Rolling for calls with no fixed deadline, or Closed. That countdown is worked out the same way everywhere it appears, so a card, a search result and a reminder email never disagree about how much time you have.

Browsing by type of opportunity

Calls are not all exhibitions. Each type has its own page, reachable from the browse list and from search engines:

exhibitions, residencies, public art, commissions, group shows, solo competitions, purchase awards, open studios, workshops, fellowships, applications and memberships, and artist markets.

Each page carries its own heading, for example Artist Residency Opportunities or Purchase Award Opportunities, and lists only calls of that type.

Browsing by organization

Browse Organizations lists the galleries, art centers and organizations running calls, each with up to three of its calls that are open and their deadlines. Open one to see everything it is currently running.

Signed in, you can Follow an organization from that page or from any of its call cards. Your followed organizations are gathered under the Following tab of Organizations on your dashboard.

Keeping track of a call

On a call card and on the call page, Follow marks a call you care about. The button then reads Following. Following a call gets you a notification when it opens for submissions, which is the point of following one that has not opened yet. You need to be signed in.

Following is a reminder, not a place. There is no separate list of followed calls, so use it for the ones you intend to enter rather than as a filing system.

Being told about new calls

Two things send you calls rather than making you look for them.

Saved searches. From Search Calls on your dashboard, set up a search, then Save Search, name it, and turn its notifications on. New calls matching those criteria are emailed to you. Manage them under Saved Searches, where each one shows a Notifications badge when alerts are on. You can also turn Saved Search Alerts on or off for your whole account in your email preferences.

Call alerts. When a search on the public browse page turns up nothing, it offers to email you when new calls open. That one takes an email address and needs no account, but it is not tied to your search criteria.

Recommendations

Recommendations on your dashboard suggests calls based on your profile and what you have looked at, under three tabs: For You, Trending and Saved. Save on a recommendation keeps it in the Saved tab.

Recommendations improve as your profile fills out. If yours is thin, the page says so and points you at your mediums and styles. See Completing your profile.

Reading a call before you enter

Open a call and read all of it before starting. The page tells you what the organization accepts, what it requires from you, the entry fee, the deadline, how work will be selected, and when you can expect to hear back. If no notification date is shown, the organization has not committed to one.

Apply now starts a submission. If you already have a submission to that call the button reads Manage submissions, with Submit Another beside it when the call still has room.