Thresholds - A Realist Exhibition of Stillness and Change

Presented by the Realist Art League
Globe Dye Works, Philadelphia
October 24 – November 24, 2025
Opening Reception: October 24

Submission DEADLINE: OCTOBER 1

As autumn deepens and the year wanes, The Realist Art League invites realist artists to submit figurative and still life works exploring the threshold—that quiet, potent moment between presence and absence, life and death, day and night, surface and interior.

Following the success of Real Friends—which brought together a vibrant community of realist painters, drew over 100 attendees on opening night, and led to multiple sales—The Realist Art League and Globe Dye Works return with a new exhibition that shifts focus inward.

We seek work that dwells in the in-between—emotive, atmospheric, and finely observed.

Open Call

What We're Looking For

  • Realist figurative, portraiture, landscape, interior and still life work only

  • Themes may include: liminality, transience, psychological tension, seasonal transition, interior space, stillness, or vanitas symbolism

  • Open to all traditional mediums. No AI. No digital illustration.

  • All work must be available for sale and professionally presented

Important Dates

  • Submission Deadline: October 1, 2025

  • Notification of Acceptance: October 6, 2025

  • Delivery of Accepted Work: By October 18, 2025

  • Exhibition Dates: October 24 – November 24, 2025

  • Opening Reception: Thursday, October 24

Submission Fee & Sales

There is a $25 submission fee for up to 3 works. This non-refundable fee helps cover exhibition costs including promotion, installation, and event staffing.

All accepted works must be professionally presented. While sales are encouraged, artworks may be marked Not For Sale (NFS) at the artist’s discretion.

For sold work, the gallery retains a 30% commission; artists receive 70% of the sale price.

How to Submit

You’ll need:

  • Artist name and contact info

  • Title, medium, size, year, and price for each work

  • High-quality JPG or PNG images (max 10MB each)

  • 📌 Please name your files:
    LastName_FirstName_Title.jpg
    (Example: Doe_Jane_RemainsOfLight.jpg)

Venue

Thresholds will be presented at Globe Dye Works, a repurposed 19th-century textile mill in North Philadelphia. Its dramatic natural light, raw industrial character, and scale provide a powerful setting for intimate, emotionally resonant realism.


Instagram: @realistartleague