Open Call for Artists with a connection to Norfolk
Resonance
A group exhibition exploring presence and absence
Curated by Andrea Hannon
Submission Deadline: 13th December
Exhibition Dates: 1 July – 1 August 2027
Location: All Saints Church, Kirkgate Lane, Wighton, NR23 1PL
About
Resonance explores ideas of presence (what is there) and absence (what is not there) — encompassing loss / belonging, disappearance / closeness, omission / creation, acceptance / rejection.
Rather than approaching the church through a religious or historical lens, this exhibition treats the building itself as a powerful architectural metaphor for these dualities. A church is a space where people gather, celebrate and are fully present, yet it also holds memory, history, and absence — through its monuments, markers, and quiet corners. It is a space where physical presence directly collides with absolute absence.
The act of creating and experiencing art reflects this same duality: an artwork is something made physically present, yet it often comes from an underlying absence — a memory, a distant landscape, a time that can no longer be inhabited. It makes present what time has rendered absent.
We ask: how can art make these shifting states visible?
Thematic Strands
01 — The Weight of Presence
Works that ground us in what it means to be present. The body, the emotional self, relationships between self and other, self and environment — anchoring the viewer in breath, touch, material and connection.
02 — The Architecture of Absence
Works that visually or materially contemplate loss, disappearance, rejection and the physical/emotional voids left behind.
03 — The Threshold of Transition
Works that investigate the transition between the two extremes — how the past echoes into the present, the traces left on landscapes, memory, grief, and the ongoing dialogue between what has vanished and what remains. Works that sit at the threshold between loss and belonging, disappearance and closeness, omission and creation, acceptance and rejection.
Who can apply & What We’re Looking For
We welcome submissions from emerging and established artists with a connection to Norfolk . We invite both completed artworks which have NOT previously been exhibited and site-responsive proposals in all mediums (including painting, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, photography, mixed media, video, performance, sound art, and digital media).
We are particularly keen to receive proposals for the external churchyard, including site-specific works, existing sculptural works, and interventions / installations that respond directly to the site. This could include works that engage with the landscape, pathways, boundaries, gravestones, trees, walls, or thresholds between inside and outside.
How to Apply
Please send in your application form which can be downloaded here.
Plus a PDF including:
1. Up to 3 images of proposed / available work (or link to video/sound) 2. Possible title, medium, dimensions if available at this stage.
3. Outline any specific installation requirements or information
4. Short statement (max 300 words) on how your work relates to the themes. 5. Artist CV and website / Instagram
6. Send the completed application form and the PDF attachment to:
NNEP Coordinator: joannamullineaux@gmail.com by December 13th 2026
Selection & Practical Information
– Selection panel Andrea Hannon (curator) and NNEP committee members. – Selected artists notified by: Early January 2027 .
– There will be a church meeting at Wighton All Saints , 26 Kirkgate Lane , Wells-next-the -Sea,
NR23 1PL in late February/Early March. TBC on selection.
– Work must be available for the full exhibition period.
– Artists responsible for delivery and collection of work, unless otherwise agreed.
– Artists are responsible for insuring their own work, including transit, installation, and for the duration of the exhibition.
-The NNEP provides Public Liability Insurance for the Installation, Exhibition and Removal dates .
