BlackFlash Issue 42.3 (Winter 2026)
Deadline: July 25, 2025
We are inclined to seek out patterns, whether they are there or not. Faced with fragments, we instinctively reach for coherence as a way to retrofit logic onto chaos. Pattern recognition is instinctive, but it’s also ideological. In a culture defined by speed and saturation, pattern recognition has become both a coping mechanism and a critical practice. Memetic ideas and images have gained new cultural currency, as circulation and resharing become the primary means of exposure. Whether writing, curating, or creating, we forge meaning by linking concepts, images, attitudes and framing them into something that holds.
Pattern recognition shapes how we interact with visual culture. It underpins curatorial practice, informs art criticism, maps onto our psychology, and bridges different forms and media: from textiles and craft to digital art. It’s as much a way of constructing taste and belief as it is a method for organizing knowledge and perception.
For this issue, we invite critical engagements with “patterns” as a method for creating and parsing visual culture. We’re interested in pitches that examine how patterns are identified, circulated, and aestheticized; how biases take shape and unravel; how rituals are preserved through practice; how trends emerge, evolve, and are named. We’re thinking about the line between good and great curating, the unexpected affinities that reshape our understanding of art history and the present, and, more broadly, how and why we insist on looking for meaning as we navigate the noise of contemporary visual culture. We’re interested in works that employ repetition as a device or seek the signal in the noise. We welcome pitches for features, interviews, artist profiles, and artist projects that bring a critical perspective to the theme and interpret it in creative and distinctive ways.
Keywords: memes; AI: algorithms; textiles; ritual; design; criticism; trends; forecasts; curatorial practice; technology; behaviour; motif; sequence; rhythm; archive; network; rhyme; tropes; repetition; genre; data; metadata; diagrams; circulation; movements; analysis; language; epistemology; code; oeuvre; aesthetic; feedback; loops;
Pitches for features, conversations, artist profiles, and artist projects will be accepted until July 25, 2025. Send pitches to submissions[at]blackflash[dot]ca with the subject line 42.3 PITCH.
Your pitch should be under 250 words and provide a concise summary of your topic and approach. Explain your angle on the subject. If it’s a topic that’s been widely covered, highlight your unique critical perspective. The pitch should reflect the style and tone of your intended piece, giving a clear sense of your authorial voice. Please include an estimated word count and any relevant hyperlinks.
If you have recent writing samples (published or unpublished) that you would like us to consider, you can include them as links (to publications or your website), or as attachments.
We compile each issue from a mix of commissioned texts and pitched submissions. Since we review pitches on a rolling basis, we encourage early submissions, as the issue may be full before the deadline.
To familiarize yourself with the different kinds of texts we publish, please take a look at some of our recent publications. When pitching please indicate the format (ie: conversation, feature, etc). Please do not send multiple pitches for the same issue.
FEATURES: A 2,000-2,500 word text on a critical theme in contemporary art and culture, exploring urgent topics, under-explored histories, and objects of fascination you haven’t seen written about elsewhere.
Recent features include:
Steph Wong Ken responds to the Fragments of Epic Memory exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario
Neil Price’s consideration of Black art and the natural world.
Michael Peterson’s essay on the legacy and impact of Saskatoon’s Red Shift Gallery.
Writer’s fee: $1,000
CONVERSATIONS: A 2,500-3,000 word conversation between you and an artist, writer, or organizer, delving into their practice or a mutually shared topic of interest, including a brief introduction by the interviewer.
Recent interviews include:
Luther Konadu in conversation with Leonard Suryajaya about their expansive, theatrical photographic practice.
Steff Hui Ci Ling in conversation with Lily Jue Sheng on art, labour, and organizing
Angel Callander in Conversation with Yang Wen Chang
Writer’s fee: $750.00
Interviewee honorarium: $150.00
ARTIST PROFILES: Introduce readers to a contemporary visual artist in a 1500 word text.
Recent artist profiles include:
Gabrielle Willms on the work of Erica Eyres
Cole Thompson examines one of Sean Weisgerger’s paintings.
Writer’s fee: $600.00
ARTIST PROJECTS: Showcase your studio practice and research in concert with the theme. Here, the portfolio of images take the starring role. Projects can include 500 words plus a portfolio of images to fill up to six pages.
Recent artist projects include:
Celestial Throne (Augmented Reality) by Rah Eleh
Artist’s fee: $450.00
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