Intentional Unconventional — Experimental Photography & Video

Photo Cleveland is a Cleveland, Ohio photography community and exhibition project led by Jim Szudy. "Intentional Unconventional" is its open call for an avant-garde multimedia exhibition built around experimentation within the medium — work that breaks away from conventional imagery and mainstream storytelling.

The brief is specific about what "non-traditional" means here: not unusual subject matter, but unusual making. The jury wants images where the artist experimented and thought outside the box in how the work was created — abstract concepts, non-linear structures, and unconventional techniques. Photography, video, and mixed media are accepted, with mixed media required to use photography as its main component.

Selected works are shown at The Brownhoist (4403 St. Clair Ave, Cleveland), with an opening on Saturday, July 11 from 6–9 PM that includes a live immersive audio-visual installation by Ryan Kinney and Jim Szudy. The show runs July 11–31, 2026 and is free to the public.

Entry is $35 for up to three photo or mixed-media works, or $20 for two videos, with a maximum of three works total. Because it is an all-ages event, work containing nudity is not accepted, and submissions addressing religious or political themes are excluded. The deadline to submit is June 27, 2026.