Art and written open call submissions on the theme of THE LIMINALITY OF TIME for Issue 72 of Haus-a-rest

Haus-a-rest Zine — www.haus-a-rest.com

Deadline 1st June 2026

We invite artists, writers, and interdisciplinary practitioners to submit work that explores the liminality of time—those thresholds where past, present, and future blur, overlap, or dissolve.

Time is often imagined as linear, measurable, and fixed. Yet our lived experience tells a different story: moments stretch and contract; memory reshapes chronology; anticipation folds the future into the now.

There are spaces where time hesitates—twilight hours, transitional seasons, states of waiting, endings that feel like beginnings.

These are liminal zones, where certainty loosens, and transformation becomes possible.

This open call seeks works that engage with time as fluid, unstable, or suspended.

We welcome interpretations that consider:

• Temporal dislocation, déjà vu, and repetition
• Rituals, cycles, and nonlinear narratives
• Memory, forgetting, and archival fragments
• Futures imagined, deferred, or collapsing into the present
• Threshold states: dusk and dawn, migration, illness, recovery, grief, becoming
• The tension between permanence and ephemerality

We encourage submissions across forms, including but not limited to:

• Visual art (painting, photography, video, installation)
• Writing (poetry, short fiction, experimental prose, essays)
• Sound, performance documentation, and hybrid works

Submission Guidelines for ARTISTS

You must provide:

• A brief description of the proposed or existing work (max. 300 words). The description should explain how the work connects to the theme and explain the context. This is one of the key ways we select your work. DO NOT SIMPLY DESCRIBE THE WORK! We want you to explain how your work fits the theme and the context.
• A clear, well-photographed image of your work.  Please ensure that your work is resolved.
• Your Instagram tag is a MUST.  We will not select artists who do not have an Instagram tag.

For video / film

• Video and film - Vimeo and YouTube only. PLEASE INCLUDE A LINK TO YOUR VIDEO  and ensure it is set to public settings. Please include a still of the work.
• Performance and live art
• Sound art. Please include a still image we can use alongside your sound piece.
  
  

Submission Guidelines for WRITERS

• Genres: Short stories, essays, poetry, experimental writing, thought pieces, opinions and cross-genre works
• Length: Up to 1,000 words for prose; up to 3 poems
• Format: Word document only
• Synopsis: A summary of the piece (50 words) explaining how it connects to the theme.

What the artists and writers will gain from being part of Haus-a-rest

Haus-a-rest is an online zine that has been running for six years with monthly open calls and exhibitions. It is now in its 72nd issue and has over 16k followers across Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.  Each month, we select work that exemplifies the theme, and we promote it as part of the issue.

There is NO FEE to enter or if you are selected.

Once selected, your work will be added across our social media and on the website www.haus-a-rest.com.  Once the issue is live, we email our contacts and promote the issue.

You will gain exposure and be considered for future issues as a featured artist or writer.

It is a fantastic opportunity to extend your reach, gain exposure and be considered for future art opportunities, all for NO FEES!

Terms and Conditions

All submissions must be original works created by the applicant.

Selected works will be featured in an online exhibition and/or a publication.

By submitting, you grant us the right to display, publish, and promote your work as part of this project.

Typically, the works are online for six months, but this is not guaranteed.

Artists and writers retain all rights to their work.

Important Dates

Submission deadline: 1st June 2026

Exhibition / publication launch: Mid June 2026

About the Project

This initiative aims to gather diverse perspectives on how time is felt, resisted, reimagined, and inhabited. By bringing together multiple voices and media, we hope to create a space that reflects the ambiguity and richness of temporal experience.

We are particularly interested in works that challenge conventional structures, embrace uncertainty, and dwell in the in-between.

Artists may approach this theme through any medium, including but not limited to painting, sculpture, photography, video, installation, performance, and digital art. Both literal and abstract interpretations are welcome.

We are particularly interested in works that challenge perception, reveal emotional depth, or invite viewers to confront their own hidden worlds.

Eligibility

This open call is open to artists at all stages of their practice. Emerging and underrepresented voices are especially encouraged to apply. 

Terms and Conditions

All submissions must be original works created by the applicant.

Selected works will be featured in an online exhibition and/or a publication. 

By submitting, you grant us the right to display, publish, and promote your work as part of this project. 

Typically, the works are online for six months, but this is not guaranteed.

Artists and writers retain all rights to their work.

WHO WE ARE

Haus-a-rest is an independent online zine dedicated to showcasing creative voices across the globe, with over 16k followers across social media.

We highlight visual art, literature, experimental work, and cross-disciplinary practice. Every issue is curated around a theme that asks artists and writers to push their boundaries and explore new ways of seeing.

@haus_a_rest

www.haus-a-rest.com

EDITORS:     @jennafox.artist and    @nicholarodgers.artist

Good luck!