Notification will be made September 25, 2025

On Display October 15 – November 30, 2025

Awards will be announced on November 3.

Introducing After Dark

After Dark is a captivating art exhibition that delves into the quiet, mysterious, and evocative world that emerges when the sun goes down. Through a curated collection of paintings, photographs, installations, and mixed media works, After Dark invites viewers into a realm where light fades, shadows stretch, and the ordinary becomes infused with mood, ambiguity, and atmosphere.

Drawing inspiration from the tradition of nocturne painting, the exhibition explores the nuanced beauty of nighttime, from city streets bathed in artificial glow to remote landscapes under the hush of moonlight. Each piece captures the emotional resonance of night: its solitude, its secrets, and the heightened sense of presence that darkness often brings. The artists in After Dark use limited palettes, subtle contrasts, and softened forms to express the stillness and introspection that twilight and night inspire.

Whether it’s the gentle flicker of a single lamp in an open window or the vast, starlit silence of a rural field, After Dark reveals how night transforms the way we see, feel, and imagine. The exhibition invites visitors to slow down and attune to the subtleties of light and shadow, of sound and silence the work seeks offer a sensory experience that is both immersive and deeply reflective.

This exhibition is a meditation on the nocturnal, a celebration of the unseen, and a tribute to the artistry that arises when the world grows quiet and the light begins to fade.

Maryland Federation of Art (MFA) invites all artists internationally to enter our After Dark Show 2025. Any original 2D or 3D work will be considered. Works selected by the juror will be exhibited in MFA’s Virtual Gallery from October 15 – November 30, 2025.

 

Juror: John Hrehov: Professor and Head of the Department of Art and Design at Purdue University Fort Wayne

John Hrehov holds an MFA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art. He is a Professor and Head of the Department of Art and Design at Purdue University Fort Wayne (PFW). Hrehov has had numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout the country, including Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL; Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN; Yvonne Rapp Gallery, Louisville, KY; Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL; and Denise Bibro Fine Art, NYC.

Awards include Gladys Emerson Cook Prize in the Area of Prints, Drawings and Pastel, 167th Annual Exhibition National Academy of Design, NYC and Eastman-Bolton Memorial Award, Cleveland Institute of Art. His work has been featured and reviewed in various publications including Art in America, American Artist Magazine, Louisville Courier-Journal, and The Journal Gazette of Fort Wayne, IN. He is exclusively represented by Denise Bibro Fine Arts, Inc. in New York City where he has had numerous solo and group exhibitions of his paintings and drawings since 1998.

Juror’s Statement

To be published with the awards on November 3.

Awards

Awards designated by the juror total $500.

Information for Accepted Artists

Exhibition Schedule

Exhibition Schedule:

  • Jun 24 Online Entry Opens for Submissions
  • Aug 27 Entry Deadline @ 11:59 PM
  • Sept 25 Notification @ 5 PM
  • Oct 15 Exhibition Opens
  • Nov 3 Awards Announced @ 5 PM
  • Nov 30 Last Day of the Exhibition

Liability

Liability

MFA shall not be liable for any special or consequential damages that result from the use of, or inability to use, MFA’s virtual exhibition gallery.

Sales

Sales

  • MFA’s Virtual Sales Gallery is provided to North American artists to sell their work. Only artists in the 48 contiguous United States may set a price. MFA will reimburse up to $35 in shipping costs to those artists for online sales shipments if a receipt is provided. All other artists must enter Price on Request (POR) and purchase inquiries will be referred by MFA to the artist.
  • Artists will retain 80% from sales (85% for MFA Members). MFA will retain 20% commission (15% for MFA Members) on any work sold through MFA. The sale of artwork is taxable, and all sales tax processing will be handled by MFA. Artists will be responsible for fulfillment of sales.
  • MFA asks that artists donate 20% from any sale made through a direct referral from MFA within three months. All donations are used to help defray operating costs of Maryland Federation of Art and are tax-deductible by the artists to the full extent of the law.

Notification

All entrants will receive notification by email. Accepted artists will also be posted on MFA’s website. Artists who have unsubscribed from MFA emails will not receive notification. The notice to accepted artists will include specific details and could vary from the prospectus. Please set your email account to recognize amani@mdfedart.org and info@mdfedart.org. Contact Circle Gallery if you do not receive notice by 6 PM on the day of notification.