The Curated Fridge Winter 2026

The Curated Fridge Winter 2026 call is now open! The show will be curated by Disparate Projects and will be presented in Behind VA Shadows, an alternative space located in Harvard Sq, Cambridge, MA. TCF will be traveling from the kitchen to the window front gallery hosted by BVAS from January 23th, 2026 to April 2nd, 2026.

Behind VA Shadows is an artists-run DIY public art project founded in December 2021 by a group of Visitor Assistants at the ICA/Boston. BVAS initiative aims to break down barriers between art and the public, showcasing the creative work of museum workers while extending accessibility beyond institutional walls. By holding the alternative space for the public to engage with the creative identity of museum workers, BVAS advocates for communal care to counter the issues of burnout within art museums and institutions.

https://behindvashadows.com/
https://www.instagram.com/behindvashadows/

Disparate Projects is an evolving collective, platform, and press dedicated to the exploration of contemporary photography. Founded by Lisa Beard, Micah McCoy, and Vann Thomas Powell, they are committed to thoughtful photographic curation, engaging critical discussions in photographic theory, and nurturing collaborations with photographers of disparate approaches.

https://disparateprojects.com/
https://www.instagram.com/disparate_projects/

Lisa Beard is a photo-based artist, writer, teacher, and curator. Her conceptual practice develops unique photo-based processes for each project, aligning form, process, and subject. Lisa’s work explores the shifting natures of truth, memory, and reality, revealing what endures across time both individually and collectively. Featured in national and international exhibitions, her work has appeared in group and solo shows, recently as a featured exhibitor for Head On Photo Festival in Sydney, AU. She has also been included in publications for The International Center of Photography, The Hand Magazine, Float Magazine, and Broad Magazine. She is a 2024 Klompching Fresh Finalist and Photolucida Critical Mass 2024 Top 200 Finalist. Lisa received her MFA in Media Arts from Maine Media College (2022).

Micah McCoy is photographer, curator, and poet, Micah’s exploration of complex themes brings depth and resonance to both his personal practice and our collective projects. Micah received his MFA in Photography from Columbia College Chicago (2022) and has been featured in solo exhibitions in the United States and abroad. His work explores issues of religiosity, anxiety, and social detachment. Micah’s editorial work has appeared in publications including NBC News, The New York Post, and Smile Politely. Micah is a Photolucida Critical Mass 2025 Top 200 Finalist.

Vann Thomas Powell is a photographer, curator, and researcher. His visual practice incorporates diverse photographic mediums in concert with historical and philosophical research to investigate how past, place, and memory construct identity and meaning. Vann received his MFA in Experimental and Documentary Art at Duke University (2023) and has been featured in solo exhibitions, books, and periodicals in the United States and abroad including The Independent (UK), Glitterati Editions (New York, NY). His books and works can be found in private and public collections including the Rubenstein Rare Books and Manuscripts Library (Duke University) and the Museum of Fine Art Special Collections (Tufts University). Vann is a Photolucida Critical Mass 2023 Top 200 Finalist.


The Curated Fridge Winter 2026 call
Deadline: January 4, 2026 (postmarked mail)
Fees: Free!
Theme: Instant Permanence

Our world exists both in the physical plane and within the cloud. It’s easy to forget how fragile that balance is and how our lives, memories, and images are bound to invisible servers and data farms. Cloud storage and social feeds may feel like lasting personal archives, but their permanence can be an illusion. They can vanish with a glitch, a policy change, or the death of a platform.
The instant photograph, by contrast, resists this impermanence. Its creation is an act of rebellion against the fleeting and the digital. Each print is immediate, tangible, and singular; a moment recorded, etched in light through chemistry and touch. Emerging from the camera with physical weight, the instant photograph becomes an artifact of presence and time.

Instant Permanence is a call for photographic works that honor the spirit of images that embrace the honesty, immediacy, and material truth of the instant photograph. Show us work that rings true of an image created instantly from your camera, not your cloud. Submit your instant photographs and be part of a visual conversation that demands to be seen, felt, and remembered.

Clarification: You can make your instant photos any way you like to for however you fell it relates to the call. You can submit your original, instant photos or make digital prints of them and send them over.


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General information about the calls:
* Please read carefully and follow the instructions since some things have changed.
* Open to all photographers world wide, both amateur and professional.
* No AI photography.
* Accepted images will be posted on The Curated Fridge website and social media.

Guidelines:
* You can submit up to 5 images.
* For consideration in this call, all participants must mail printed photographs in addition to their emailed submissions.
* Printing size no bigger than 4x6" or 5x5"
* Please write your name on the back, and mention "for TCF*
* Photos that were accepted in previous TCF shows will not be considered.

Mail your prints to:
The Curated Fridge
281 Medford Street
Somerville, MA 02143

* If you're local, you can alternatively drop them off.
* If you're submitting multiple prints as a group (art class, collective etc.) you can bundle the prints.

Email the jpgs of the submitted files to: thecuratedfridge(@)gmail.com
* Image specifications: 1280 on the longest side, 72 ppi, sRGB, jpeg.
* Name your jpegs like this: Mary_Jones_1, Mary_Jones_2 etc...
* Please do not send zip files, nor use wetransfer.
* Please include your name, email, website and instagram handle in the EMAIL SUBJECT LINE, following the example (It makes things so much easier when processing your submission. Thank you!)
Mary Jones [email protected] www.maryjones.com @maryjones

Again, you have to email your jpegs, print your photographs, and also mail them to The Curated Fridge. Do not wait until last minute to submit, since it might take some time for your envelope to arrive, especially during holiday season. Alternatively, if you think you won't have enough time to print or printing is not your strongest suit, consider using an online printing company like Shutterfly, Mpix etc. and mailing the prints directly to The Curated Fridge' address.
Please note that only complete submissions will be considered, so take your time and send over your materials as requested.

Finally, if your prints are selected by the curator, they will be archived. All the prints that are not selected will be destroyed, unless you have provided a self-addressed stamped envelope.