SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Submitting your work for consideration

The Nelson Museum, Archives, & Gallery is both an art gallery and history museum with an extensive regional archive. Our carefully considered curatorial programming seeks to deliver a diverse offering of art and history — and the convergence of the two — in order to bring the most relevant exhibitions possible to our audience.

Exhibition programming is primarily invitational. Exhibitions presented at the Nelson Museum are confirmed 18 to 24 months in advance and are developed by the Curator, Archivist, Executive Director, and Exhibition Committee. We welcome artist submissions for the sole purpose of informing us about your work. These packages should not take the format of an exhibition proposal; rather they should serve to introduce your work to our organization. All proposals are kept on file and utilized if/when they fit into the curatorial direction for a given exhibition year. 
To let us know more about your practice, artists are encouraged to share: 
• A professional CV 
• Artist Statement 
• A selection of 10 – 20 images which best represent your practice (in .jpg format).

Images should be numbered and accompanied by a separate document that lists the title, year of production, medium, and dimensions for each work, as well as any other information that will assist in our appreciation and understanding of the work. Please provide web links (and passwords if necessary) for time-based work. 

Regional exhibitions and artist representation are factors in the development of every NMAG exhibition season, and we endeavour to not duplicate exhibitions or the presentation of artists’ work in the region within a 3-5 year timeframe.

Only electronic packages will be accepted. Send to curator@nelsonmuseum.ca and please indicate the exhibition submission, and the year applying in the subject line. Hard copy applications will not be considered and materials will not be returned. The Nelson Museum does not have a formal deadline for submissions, though they are reviewed periodically. Only those artists whose work is being considered will be contacted.  

Our Commitment to Anti-Racism, Diversity, Decolonization, and a Collaborative Community: 

The Nelson Museum, Archives & Gallery acknowledges the legacies of racial oppression, violence and exclusion that are a part of our history and shape our current world. We are committed to supporting the dismantling of structures that perpetuate racist and social inequities through actions – both immediate and future – to direct our organization, its resources and programming, to drive positive change. 

We unequivocally believe that Black and Indigenous lives matter, and oppose racism against Black, Indigenous and all people of colour as well as discrimination in all forms against 2SLGBTQ+ people, and those with stigmatized identities and disabilities. We support the fight for racial equity and social justice, and are committed to representativeness, inclusion, and access. We will work to disassemble the practices, behaviors and structures that perpetuate and prolong systemic racism within our organization and the arts and culture sectors.  

We thank the Art Gallery of Alberta for sharing some of the language from their Anti-Racism and Equity Statement with us.  
Read the full statement here.

About the Nelson Museum, Archives & Gallery

Gallery A is a stunning, purpose-built, 1,500 sq.ft. Gallery space with professional exhibition lighting and climate control.   Gallery B is an intimate, purpose-built, 500 sq.ft. Gallery space with professional exhibition lighting and climate control. 
Floor plans of both spaces can be downloaded here.

Letters of Support

Letters of support will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Please submit your request for a letter of support to curator@nelsonmuseum.ca at least 30 days prior to your deadline.