Banner Detail: The Old Guard, watercolor, Michael Kotarba for MFA’s After Dark 2026
After Dark is a captivating art exhibition that explores the quiet, mysterious, and evocative world that emerges when the sun goes down. 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. MFA invites artists to use limited palettes, subtle contrasts, and softened forms to express the stillness and introspection that twilight and night inspire. 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. Through a curated collection of paintings, photographs, installations, and mixed media works, After Dark will lure viewers into a realm where light fades, shadows stretch, and the ordinary becomes infused with mood, ambiguity, and atmosphere. Maryland Federation of Art’s (MFA) exhibitions are blind juried by professional and credentialed art experts. Entry is open to all artists from around the world, with exception of sanctioned countries. Any original 2D or 3D work that follows our exhibition guidelines will be considered. Works selected by the juror will be exhibited in MFA’s After Dark exhibition through our Virtual Gallery from October 15 – December 14, 2026. Kevin M. Murphy is the Eugénie Prendergast Senior Curator of American and European art at the Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA), as well as Affiliate Faculty in the department of American Studies and the Graduate Program in the History of Art. Since joining WCMA in 2013, Murphy has organized numerous exhibitions, often with an interdisciplinary focus. He also co-teaches a popular course on the art market, “Acquiring Art,” in which students propose art work for WCMA to purchase. Most recently, he leads collections and exhibitions projects related to WCMA’s construction of a new museum building, scheduled to open in late 2027. Prior to joining WCMA, Murphy was a founding curator of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas and associate curator of American art at the Huntington Library, Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California. He earned his PhD in art history from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a BA in art history from Pitzer College, Claremont, California.
Introducing After Dark
Juror: Kevin Murphy, Eugénie Prendergast Senior Curator of American and European Art, Williams College Museum of Art
Submissions for the After Dark transported me to places real and imagined. I was struck by the number of submissions evocative of geographies, those found on maps, and those mapping interior states, all under the cover of darkness. Some of the depictions of cities and rural environments recalled my own nocturnal adventures in the United States and Europe, as well as the vastness of the universe glimpsed in quiet moments far from artificial light. In making difficult choices about which submissions to include in the exhibition, I weighed how well works situated the viewer in the spaces they depicted, alongside my admittedly subjective reading of the universality of images. I also took into account technical and aesthetic innovation. For works awarded prizes, the photograph Insignificant captures the uncanny feeling of being in architecturally oppressive environments underground and nearly alone, reminiscent of the 2026 horror film Backrooms. Printing a photograph, The Rising, on toothed etching paper adds rough texture to the image. This texture heightens the feeling of contemplation on the past and mortality, which is reinforced by the contrast of warm tones with inky darkness. Nightstand presents the thoroughly modern condition of staying up to doomscroll on one’s phone, made more poignant by the bottle of pills connoting disability and healing. The decision to award prizes to just three works among all those of merit was one that kept me up well after dark. – Kevin Murphy
Juror’s Choice Honorable Mentions
Juror’s Statement
Awards
Information for Accepted Artists
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
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 eleanor@mdfedart.org and info@mdfedart.org. Contact Circle Gallery if you do not receive notice by 6 PM on the day of notification.
Exhibition Schedule
Exhibition Schedule
Liability
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