Open Call: BUM Edition 6

We are seeking proposals for articles, projects, artworks or anything else your imagination can conjure, for publication in BUM Edition 6.

The theme for the edition is ‘Order’.

The word ‘Order’ relates to a variety of ideas, from notions of hierarchy and command, to online shopping, geopolitics and fast food. The diagram above shows some starting points, but we are open to your interpretation and encourage submissions which have an inventive relationship to the theme. We are particularly interested in submissions which explore ethical implications.

BUM has a wide remit, so do not be afraid to make a proposal! We are keen to publish long-form articles, poetry, prose, photographs, sculpture, paintings, installation works, opinion pieces / polemics, profiles, interviews etc. We are open to all contributions – you do not need to have a background in art / design / architecture.

Submissions must be original: we will not consider any previously published work.

Proposals should be submitted as a single A4 page PDF (+ additional images if necessary) to hello@bumeditions.com and should include the following:

  • Proposal title
  • Summary of proposal
  • Your name
  • Contact details (email address, telephone number and address)
  • A short biography
  • Other information requested in the applicable Article/Project/Artwork sections below. Please note that these categories are only for guidance, we are very much open to proposals which fall outside of these boundaries.

The deadline for submission of proposals is 3rd October 2022. We will reply to all submissions soon after. If you are an illustrator wishing to illustrate someone else’s written work, please send an email to hello@bumeditions.com and we will try to match you with a contributor.

We encourage submissions by new or young critics/artists/designers, and those at the beginning of their career – we look forward to hearing from you!

Article by Lara Chapman, published in BUM Edition 1: Common

 

Articles:

We accept proposals for all kinds of articles. Previously published articles have been based on research, critique and narrative, but we are open to your inventiveness.

Article lengths can vary from 250 words, 650 words and 1000 words up to an absolute maximum of 2300 words. We work closely with contributors to develop each article, and the exact word count will be discussed following selection.

Proposals for articles should include the following:

  • Concise synopsis of the proposed article, including:
    – Scope
    – Key themes / Main questions
    – Possible references
    – Relationship to theme.
  • Approximate length of article. We may request a shorter/longer article based on your proposal and editorial decisions.

We will also consider full length texts at this stage, provided they relate to the theme and have not been previously published. If you are submitting a full-length text at this stage, please make that clear in your submission.

Please note that all articles will be illustrated by the editorial team based on dialogue with the writer.

Project by Cristina Gaidos and Mark Flynn, published in BUM Edition 2: Just

Projects:

We are seeking proposals for project features consisting of text and images/photographs.

Project proposals can be from any discipline (art, photography, architecture, product design, industrial design, textile design, research or almost anything else (!)).

The project may have been previously published, but we ask that the project text and images are unique to this publication.

We work closely with each contributor to edit the text and prepare images/photographs for risograph printing. Texts for projects are generally 250, 650 or 950 words.

Proposals for projects should include the following:

  • Concise synopsis of the proposed project feature, including:
    – Scope (what is the project?)
    – Relationship to theme.
  • When the project was completed
  • If the project has been previously published
  • Length of proposed text (250/650/950 words). We may request a shorter/longer text based on your proposal and editorial decisions.
  • Example images of the completed project (these can be photographs/drawings/other image types).

Please note that all illustrations will be created in collaboration with the editorial team, and that the editorial team will have final say on images for publication. This is due to the complexity and limitations of producing images as two-colour risograph prints. We will aim to use the images you provide in an inventive and relevant manner, whilst exploring the advantages of risograph printing.

Artwork By Linden Carter, published in BUM Edition 2: Just

Artworks:

We are seeking proposals for artworks to be presented as two-colour risograph prints. Artworks can be conceptual or figurative: paintings, photographs, drawings, sculptures, performance pieces, installations, etc will all be considered. Artworks should be related to theme, if only loosely.

Proposals for artworks should include the following:

  • Concise synopsis of the proposed artwork, including: 
    – Scope 
    – Relationship to theme
    – Media
  • How you imagine the work may be presented in print. We can work with you to finalise the presentation of the artwork in riso print.
  • Preferred size and orientation. We may request a smaller/larger layout based on your proposal and editorial decisions.
  • Examples of previous artistic work.

We will also consider already completed artworks at this stage, provided they relate to the theme and have not been previously published / printed.

BUM Editions are printed in two colours, as such, your artwork will be produced as a two colour risograph print. We can help you to create the colour separations etc if you are not experienced in risograph printing but are willing to experiment!

The exact colours will be decided by the editorial team, this is because the choice of colours on one spread directly effects the colours used in others.

Photograph by Dave Merritt, published in BUM Edition 3: Steps

 

Contributor Fees:

We are an extremely small publication, but we would never ask you to work for free. We want to operate a simple and transparent fee system. All published contributions (including illustrations), regardless of size, or type, will receive the following:

  • A copy of the Edition
  • An equal share of any revenue raised from sales of the edition, after production/administration costs have been recovered.

We regret that we are not able to provide upfront contributor’s fees, but we hope that this system is transparent and fair.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at hello@bumeditions.com

We look forward to receiving your submission!