Theme for Guest Room

Der Greif has invited curator, writer, and critic KJ Abudu to curate a Guest Room. Based between New York, London, and Lagos, his writings and exhibitions focus on critical art and discursive practices responding to the world-historical conditions produced by colonial capitalist modernity. For this edition of Guest Room, he has chosen the theme “Sounds of Resistance" for your submissions.

"I’m interested in practices that simultaneously approach the photographic medium and the global field of politics in a sonic register. In other words, how might civic antagonisms, silenced histories, anti-imperial solidarities, and dissident social ensembles be figured, visually and haptically, as atonal compositions, indeterminate frequencies, and insurgent speech-acts? I encourage submissions that ask what liberatory possibilities could be gleaned from considering the sounds of images alongside the sounds of politics."

This open call invites artists to think about the hidden connections between images and sounds, and how photography can tell stories of resistance, solidarity, and unheard voices. How can an image echo the struggles and aspirations of people and communities? What happens when we think of an image not just as something we see but as something we can feel or hear - carrying whispers of histories, protests, and untold truths? We welcome works that explore these questions in creative and imaginative ways. Both images and videos are welcome for submission, encouraging diverse approaches to storytelling and interpretation.

Why submit to Guest Room?

• Be discovered by an expert in contemporary art and photography
• Get published in an online showcase on Der Greif alongside emerging artists from all over the world
• Submit for free or pay a voluntary donation of 8€
• Please note: Images which have been selected for a previous Der Greif opportunity are not eligible for re-submission. We want to support the broadest range of photographers possible and therefore encourage you to submit work that has not yet been selected by our past Guest Curators. Any images which do not comply with these terms will be removed from the selection process.
• Get the chance to be awarded a 1.000 € MPB Guest Room Scholarship
• Receive the opportunity to present a solo satellite exhibition in Dresden (Germany), starting in June 2025 as part of the PORTRAITS - Hellerau Photography presentation

Voluntary donation

After over a decade of serving the international photography community Der Greif is now finally a registered non-profit. We believe this organizational structure best reflects our artistic and cultural mission. As always, your artistic contribution makes our work on Der Greif possible.

Since starting Guest Room in January 2015, we’ve been working hard to invite a broad range of practitioners, from gallerists to editors and curators. We are convinced that this format is an interesting and low-barrier approach to help artists get their work in front of people who might be interested in working with them. For this reason, we are asking you to consider making a financial contribution as well. That’s why we’re suggesting a voluntary donation of 8€ as a submission fee. 100% of the funds we collect from your donations will go towards helping us continue providing interesting opportunities for the photography community through Guest Room, and thus expand Der Greif.

We believe in inclusivity. We don’t want this suggested donation to stand in the way of your submission. If you are unable to contribute financially, please send an email to voucher-guestroom@dergreif.org to receive a voucher code which will allow you to enter for free.

About KJ Abudu

KJ Abudu is a curator, writer, and critic based between New York, London, and Lagos. His writings and exhibitions focus on critical art and discursive practices responding to the world-historical conditions produced by colonial capitalist modernity. Abudu recently curated "Traces of Ecstasy" at the fourth Lagos Biennial and the ICA at VCU, Richmond, 2024; and "Living with Ghosts" at Pace Gallery, London, and the Wallach Art Gallery, New York, 2022. Abudu is on the curatorial team at Swiss Institute, New York, where he has curated exhibitions by Nolan Oswald Dennis, Deborah-Joyce Holman, and Kobby Adi.

About Der Greif Guest Room

Guest Room is a monthly online exhibition with open submissions curated in real-time by personalities from the international photography scene. Der Greif is an award-winning organization for contemporary photography. It is print-publication, online-publication, curatorial team and joint project all at once. Der Greif connects the digital and the analogue, exploring and expanding the borders and limits of image-distribution and -reception in the digital era.