Noguchi Call for Artist Banners

As an institution founded by Japanese American artist Isamu Noguchi, The Noguchi Museum stands in solidarity with the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and any community targeted by hate, violence, or racism. To celebrate and amplify creative voices in our local AAPI community, the Museum established its Open Call for Artist Banners project in 2021. Emerging AAPI artists based in New York City are invited to submit designs for the Museum’s outdoor banners.

The past year has seen a disheartening continuation of violence and unrest around the world. As a witness to international conflicts and nuclear proliferation in the twentieth century, Isamu Noguchi viewed the violence of his own times as symptomatic of an erosion of a sense of shared humanity and a loss of communal bonds. Noguchi regarded the role of the artist as having the potential to counter this through direct, personal expression, remarking: “If meaning is the province of the arts, so in order. When the very meaning of life becomes obscure and chaotic, how necessary is the order which with the practice of the arts leads to harmony, and without which there is only brutality” (Meanings in Modern Sculpture). With Noguchi’s example in mind, the Museum’s organizing committee, an intergenerational and cross-departmental group of staff volunteers, have chosen to center the 2022 Open Call for Artist Banners around the theme of peace.

The 2022 Open Call for Artist Banners is now open to artists ages 18 and older who self-identify as AAPI and reside in New York City’s five boroughs. To apply, artists must submit a digital file of their five designs for the three banners (each banner is double-sided, with one side devoted to the “noguchi” logo). Enclose a CV and a one-paragraph artist statement that describes how the design addresses the theme of peace. Designs that are created specifically for this proposal will be prioritized above designs that are appropriated from artists’ previous artwork. Designs should be completed and ready for printing.

The winning banner designs will be revealed on the 118th anniversary of Isamu Noguchi’s birth: Thursday, November 17, 2022. The winning artist will have their designs installed on the Museum’s outdoor banners for one year, from November 2022 through November 2023, and will receive an honorarium of $3,500. The two runners-up will each receive an honorarium of $2,500. All three artists will lead a public program in the spring of 2023, along with an artist talk to highlight their project and celebrate the AAPI community during a free admission day.

Requirements

Banner Specifications
Proposals should include unique designs for five sides of the three banners.

One banner will include the “noguchi” logo on one side (see diagram). Artists have the option to include a sixth design incorporating the logo. The logo design must be unchanged, and it must be easily readable with high contrast and at prominent size.

Artwork Size
42″ wide x 122″ tall

Clearance
Allow 2″ top and bottom for hems; wind vents at sides (see diagram)

Final Artwork Preparation
Vector art is preferred (ideally as an .ai or .pdf file, though .eps, .jpg, .psd are also acceptable formats).
Any raster art must be at least 150 dpi (minimum) at 100% scale. Color profile should be CMYK.

Application Instructions

Please send all application materials as one PDF to banners@noguchi.org with the subject line ‘Artist Banners at The Noguchi Museum.’

Submissions are due by Monday, August 22, 2022, at 11:59 pm ET.