Invitation and Theme – Spring 2026: The Shape of Time

Time is fleeting and yet is ever present: it is a reality we must all contend with, try to tame, ignore, or even hope to control with “time management” techniques. Our relationship to time is profoundly meaningful, its perception is linked to our psychological state, from time flying in joyful moments to dragging in challenging situations, and from depressed rumination of the past to anxious dread of the future.

Time is central to the artistic process. Creativity pours out in spontaneous bursts or stalls during periods of stasis; time might speed up or slow down, or might seem to stop or even dissolve as one reaches a state of flow. Routine and repetition are not only key tools for a successful practice, but they also affect our perception of time.

Art engages with one’s relationship to time: being in the present, relating to the past, and projecting into the future. Art can commemorate the past, represent the present, and envision the future. It can address the passing of time and connect with thoughts of youth, aging, and death.

Hans Baldung Grien, The Three Phases of Life and Death, oil on panel, 18.9 x 12.9 in. (48.2 x 32.8 cm), 1509–10, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna (photo: Wikimedia Commons).

Time is reflected in the work itself: from quick, dynamic, and nervous mark making to slow, quiet, and meditative compositions, and from speedy and spontaneous sketches to intricate and laborious, large projects. Some tools and mediums force one to work quickly (think about fresco), while others require painstaking and time-consuming labor.

Lois Dodd, Figure with Trees, watercolor on paper, 22.25 x 14.25 in., 1993 (courtesy Caldeck Gallery, copyright Lois Dodd).

As you explore the notion of time and how it plays out in your work and practice, you might consider further questions, such as: How do you convey temporal development in your work? What are your strategies for doing so? In what ways do you think about the development of your art over time? How are you responding to the present time? How do you prepare for the future?

We look forward to reading and seeing examples of how you give time a visual shape.

Deadline: 1 March 2026.

Guidelines for UMVA Members’ Showcase:

We invite MAJ member artists to participate in the Showcase (to become a member, click here).

For The Shape of Time issue, submit up to four JPEG or png images (NO TIFF files), approximately 2500 pixels on longest side, resolution 72dpi.

• Label each image file as follows: your last name_Number of Image_Title (with no spaces in the title). Please DO NOT put whole caption/credit in image file label, see image list/caption format below (if you are submitting for a group put your own last name in first).
• Include a numbered image list at the end of your statement or brief essay (600 words or less) in Word doc. format, NOT a PDF.
• Image list/caption format: create a list that is numbered to match the number in your image file label that includes the following in this order: Artist’s Name, Title of Work, medium, size (example: 9 x 12 in.), date (optional), photo credit (example: photo: Ansel Adams) if not included we assume it is courtesy of the artist. Example: Unknown Artist, Untitled, oil on canvas, 9 x 12 in., 2000 (photo: Ansel Adams).
• Label your document file names: Last Name_Title.
• Please wait until all of your material is compiled to submit.

Put “Shape of Time” in the subject line and submit by email to umvalistings@gmail.com by the 1 March 2026 deadline. MAJ will limit the Members’ Showcase section to UMVA members who have not been published in the past year.

Do not send preformatted visual essays. Our editors will lay out text and images submitted using the guidelines above.

It is the MAJ’s policy to request and publish image credits. We will not publish images for which the contributor does not have the right to publish. However, it is to be assumed that any uncredited or unlabeled images are contributing artists’ own images. By submitting to the MAJ, you are acknowledging respect for these policies.