Call For Entries – The Raygun Show (image by Martin Currie)
Rayguns first appeared in science fiction as early as the late 19th century, including the famous ‘heat-ray’ in H G Wells’ War of the Worlds. The ray gun really came into its own between the 1940s and 1960s with classic ray-gun designs appearing in the pages of comics such as Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon and Star Trek.
In the 1960s seminal American pop-artist Claes Oldenberg recognised the fictional weapon’s place in pop-culture when he made his famous raygun sculptures – later he presented a huge collection of found toy guns, and other raygun-like objects as part of a permanent exhibit at the museum of Modern Art in New York. In the 21st century the popularity of sci-fi conventions and cosplay has seen a whole new generation of enthusiasts crafting ray guns to mimic those used in films, games, comic-strips and television.
For this exhibition in our gallery showcase, 20-21 seeks artist-made (or found) rayguns of every shape and description. Our aim is to have the widest variety of ray-guns and makers as possible. The exhibition is open submission and we aim to show all items we receive.
What:
We are after artist made or found ray-guns of every shape and description – it could be something you’ve made – or could just be a found object that looks like ray gun? (Oldenberg’s collections include sticks, bits of plastic and old pieces of machinery). The maximum size is 40cm x 30cm x 12cm. Maximum weight 750g. Please complete an Entry Form and include with your submission.
Where:
20-21 Visual Arts Centre is an art gallery based in Scunthorpe. We host a wide variety of contemporary art and craft exhibitions. In recent years this has included Turner Prize winner Antony Gormley’s iconic Field for the British Isles and solo exhibitions by acclaimed Scottish artist Rachel Maclean and multi-million selling illustrator Nick Sharratt. Alongside our contemporary art exhibitions we have also produced exhibitions of artforms that are often underrepresented in public galleries, including tattoo art, custom cars, comic art and cosplay.
Fees etc:
There is no entry fee or artist payment available for this exhibition for this exhibition. All items will be returned by post by 20-21 to the artist after the exhibition.
How to be part of The Raygun Show
Rayguns should be posted to 20-21 Visual Arts Centre, Church Square, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire DN15 6TB, to arrive by 16 July at the latest. They can also be dropped off at 20-21 during normal opening hours Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 4pm (or outside of these times by appointment emailing dominic.mason@northlics.gov.uk). Our aim is to show every item that is submitted, but we reserve the right not to include any items that are inappropriate for our audience or we feel do not meet the theme/criteria.
Exhibition dates:
The exhibition is due to take place between 23 July and 10 September 2016 – Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 4pm.
Please note:
We are unable to accept submissions of multiple objects from organised groups (for example schools or clubs).
For further info:
If you have any questions/ queries please contact Dominic Mason at dominic.mason@northlincs.gov.uk 01724 297073
Downloads
Raygun Show Entry Form (Word Version)
Raygun Show entry form (PDF Version)
