PICKLE my
PEARLS!

If the world is my oyster, then oysters are my playground.  While I have never developed a preference for raw oysters (it is a texture, not taste, issue), I will take them steamed or fried, cajun or asian, and even in my Thanksgiving stuffing.  I will eventually forgive my husband for developing an allergy to shellfish, but you’re gonna have to give me a little time with that one.  This Call wants to know what YOUR natural playground looks like.  Interpretation is key…

Check out this Call for Entries from Darkroom Gallery in Vermont called Natural Playground. Enter your work for as little as $20. Don’t forget Darkroom offers free framing & matting on accepted work!

* Editor’s Note: I just found out that one of my pieces got into their last Call, Persona, and if I can get Xerography into a show, you can take a chance too.  Put yourself out there and TRY.  Please make sure that you tell them that you found the show on Art & Art Deadlines so they know that all the talent is here at AAAD.

CALL FOR ENTRIES:
Natural Playground

Playgrounds come in all shapes and sizes, and they’re likely the first place your sense of adventure was tested . . . and further cultivated.  For the outdoor aficionado, what first started as an obsession for see-saws, swing sets, slides, jungle gyms, and sandboxes, has since turned into an instinctive passion for adventure by means of a different type of playground — the natural playground.

Whether by trail, rock, water, snow or air, where has your obsession for adventure taken you?  What’s your photographic definition of Living the Dream?  Skiing or snowboarding in the Alps or at your local hill?  Climbing in Thailand or at the backyard crag?  Mountain Biking in British Columbia or on your neighborhood trails?  Surfing pristine Tahiti barrels or a quiet home break?  Kayaking through Patagonia or along your favorite coastline? 

For those passionate about their adventure and their photography, show the photographic moments you’ve captured that will inspire the next adventure . . . in The Natural Playground

JUROR:  Corey Rich is a photographer, Filmmaker & Principal at Aurora Photos and one of the world’s most recognized adventure and outdoor lifestyle visual storytellers.  He has captured stunning still photos and video on a wide array of assignments, including rock climbing in India, ultra-marathon racing in the Sahara Desert of Morocco, freight train hopping in the American West, and snowboarding in Papua New Guinea.  Today, much of his time goes into capturing both still images and video for the creation of multimedia projects for commercial and editorial clients.

As Vice President and co-owner of Aurora Photos, Rich was the driving force behind founding Aurora’s Outdoor Collection, which is the world’s leading brand of outdoor adventure and outdoor lifestyle photography.  Additionally, Rich is a Nikon evangelist and a member of the SanDisk Extreme Team.  His first book, My Favorite Place: Great Athletes In The Great Outdoors, was published by Chronicle Books.

Justin Gural is a marketing and communications freelancer with photography playing a prominent role throughout his commercial and editorial work.  He approached the Darkroom Gallery in the Fall of 2010, proposing to prepare and curate a juried gallery exhibit focusing on sports, adventure, travel and the outdoor lifestyle.  A concept that relates directly with the active, local Vermont community, as well as the global adventure landscape.

As founder and director of Cortex Marketing Network, a full-service marketing and communications agency staffed by an influential group of freelancing professionals, Gural leads the network specializing in integrated brand strategy, design and creative, photo/video production, public relations and copywriting, and event management. 

Gural also leads the editorial team at VentureThere.com, USA Today’s adventure sports, active travel and outdoor lifestyle website.  He directs the website’s content flow, manages photography, writes and edits editorial features, as well as travels to unique destinations while documenting the adventure.  He will be covering this exhibit on behalf of VentureThere.com once it’s underway, including photo galleries of selected submissions as well as a “Viewfinder” photographer profile of the winning photographer.