OPEN CALL

June 7 - July 20, 2025
Opening Reception, Saturday, June 7th
Taos Center for the Arts

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APPLY HERE https://forms.gle/B9pPdhBWy6GjV3Dd7

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Northern New Mexico has long been a haven for creative souls, and its history is rich with the contributions of LGBTQIA+ artists. OUT TAOS honors this often-hidden legacy through a six-week exhibition at the Taos Center for the Arts Encore Gallery, showcasing the work of LGBTQIA+ artists who live and create in Taos County.

This exhibition is an invitation to our LGBTQIA+ community to be visible, to resist silence, and to take pride in the diversity and strength within our local creative landscape. It is also a chance to share these stories with the wider community, fostering understanding and connection through art. 

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Art has always been a powerful tool for self-expression, connection, and resistance. For LGBTQIA+ communities, creative expression is not only an act of making but a political act—a way to challenge oppression, assert identity, and create spaces of belonging. Through their work, LGBTQIA+ artists tell stories of resilience, joy, love, struggle, and self-discovery. OUT TAOS celebrates these voices.

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Curated through an open call, OUT TAOS highlights the art, creativity, and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ artists, makers, homesteaders, and creatives from Taos County. Participating artists will also share personal stories—of identity, resilience, and their relationship to this place we call home—offering a deeper understanding of their work and the lives behind it.

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This show is as much about the people as it is about their art, exploring the intersections of identity, creativity, and the (dis)comforts of belonging. It underscores how art can serve as a bridge—between personal and collective experiences, between visibility and recognition, and between the past and future of our community.

In addition to the exhibition, an oral history project will amplify the voices, legacies, and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ artists in Taos County. These oral histories will be preserved locally, creating a resource for future generations to understand and celebrate this vibrant community.

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LGBTQIA+ artists have long contributed to the cultural and artistic history of the Southwest, yet their voices have often been underrepresented in mainstream narratives. Over the years, several exhibitions have helped to address this imbalance, shedding light on the vital role of LGBTQIA+ artists in shaping the region’s artistic identity.

In 1999, Harmony Hammond curated OUT WEST at Plan B Evolving Arts in Santa Fe, a groundbreaking exhibition that foregrounded LGBTQIA+ voices in New Mexico’s art scene. More recently, the New Mexico Museum of Art’s OUT WEST: Gay & Lesbian Artists in the Southwest 1900–1969, curated by Christian Waguespack, expanded this narrative, recognizing the profound contributions of gay and lesbian artists to the history of modern art in the region.

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OUT TAOS continues this legacy, bringing the focus to Taos County. This exhibition seeks to uncover and celebrate the creative work of the LGBTQIA+ community living and working in Northern New Mexico today. By showcasing their art and sharing their stories, OUT TAOS not only honors the region’s rich LGBTQIA+ history but also amplifies the voices of those shaping its present and future.

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While this exhibition centers on LGBTQIA+ voices, it is mindful of the broader context in which it exists. Northern New Mexico’s history is one of beauty and creativity, but also of colonization and cultural erasure. In acknowledging this history, OUT TAOS recognizes the intersections within the LGBTQIA+ community and other marginalized identities. It's essential to recognize that LGBTQIA+ people who also hold marginalized identities (such as being BIPOC, disabled, neurodivergent, or economically disadvantaged) often face compounded layers of discrimination and stress. An additional aim of this exhibition is to acknowledge and reduce barriers to entry into the public arts scene experienced by marginalized people.

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This project is led by local artist J. Matthew Thomas, with guidance from an advisory team that includes Kathleen Brennan, Natalie Paynter, Enrico Trujillo, Katy Ballard, Christian Waguespack and the Taos Pride and Sunday Funday organizers. 

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This project is generously sponsored by the Taos Center for the Arts with additional support by Benthouse Creative, The Paseo Project, and Casa Gallina.

 

*A Note on Anonymity:
We understand that not everyone in our community feels safe or ready to be fully out. OUT TAOS seeks to provide a space to safely share and celebrate the creativity of all members of our LGBTQIA+ community.

If you wish to participate anonymously, you may reach out directly or have someone contact Matt on your behalf. For more information, please email jmattthomas@gmail.com or write to PO Box 1075, Taos, NM 87571.

Per your request, your identity and personal information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality and will not be shared.

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Applicant Questions:
In addition to the art exhibited on the walls of the gallery, we seek to amplify the voices, legacies, and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ artists in Taos County. We want to share your thoughts and stories. Please use the following questions to spark a personal reflection. You may respond to as many as you like. 

• -Please share your coming out story or a meaningful moment in your life.

• -Tell us about living in Taos County as LGBTQIA+.

• -How does our community thrive in supporting one another?

• -What influences your creative process in your work?

• -Tell us about the art you are submitting.

• -Is there anything else you’d like to share?

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APPLICATION DETAILS:

• Deadline to Apply: December 15 - March 1, 2025

• Exhibition Dates: June 7 - July 20, 2025, Opening Reception, Saturday, June 7th, Taos Center for the Arts

• Eligibility: The exhibition is open to LGBTQIA+ artists of all ages, from emerging to professional, who live and work in Taos County.

• Accepted Media: All media types will be considered, including visual art, performance, photography, new media, sculpture, and more. Makers, farmers, builders, homesteaders, ranchers, bakers, are also encouraged to apply.

• Application Requirements: Applications must be fully completed and submitted by the deadline to be considered.

• Entry Fee: There is no fee to apply.

• Anonymous Submissions: Anonymous entries will be accepted (*see note).

• Review Process: All works will be reviewed by an advisory team of local and regional LGBTQIA+ artists and curators.

 

APPLY HERE 
https://forms.gle/B9pPdhBWy6GjV3Dd7

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