OPEN CALL FOR ARTISTS: THE DOORS
Lights On Stratford 2026/27 invites Canadian artists to bring the country to life through interactive public art
SUBMISSIONS NOW CLOSED
Lights On Stratford is inviting artists from across Canada to submit artwork for THE DOORS, an interactive public art installation that will be presented as part of the 2026/27 winter festival, CANADA: NORTHERN LIGHTS.
Featuring six illuminated, interactive doors, THE DOORS will invite visitors to open each door and discover new digital artwork playing within. Together, the six doors will create a series of small portals into the landscapes, communities, cultures, histories and imaginations that make up Canada.
Artists working in visual art, video, animation, digital art, motion graphics, illustration, photography, performance and still image media are invited to submit a short video or static image to be showcased inside one of the doors.
CANADA: NORTHERN LIGHTS
The 2026/27 Lights On Stratford theme asks audiences to look at Canada not as a single story, but as a constellation of people, places, cultures, histories and experiences.
Through THE DOORS, Lights On Stratford hopes to create six unique windows into the enormous diversity found across the country — from coast to coast to coast and beneath the northern lights. Artists are encouraged to consider what they would like someone in Stratford to discover when they open the door representing their region.
The artwork might transport visitors to a landscape thousands of kilometres away, introduce them to a person, tradition, memory, creature, sound, neighbourhood, language or idea, tell a story, or simply create a beautiful, funny, joyful, challenging, strange or unexpected moment. The strongest submissions will spark curiosity and encourage visitors to keep opening doors and discovering compelling, engaging and family-friendly artistic expression from across Canada.
THE SIX DOORS
Artists may submit one artwork for the region where they live, work, originate from or have a meaningful connection to.
- Door 1 — Stratford: Stratford, Ontario
- Door 2 — Western Canada: British Columbia and Alberta
- Door 3 — Central Canada: Manitoba and Saskatchewan
- Door 4 — Eastern Canada: Ontario and Québec
- Door 5 — Atlantic Canada: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador
- Door 6 — Northern Canada: Nunavut, Northwest Territories, and Yukon
Lights On Stratford recognizes that Indigenous territories, cultures, communities and relationships with land extend across provincial, territorial and international borders.
WHO CAN APPLY?
The open call welcomes emerging and established Canadian artists and creators aged 18 and over. Collaborative submissions are also welcome.
Lights On Stratford particularly encourages submissions from First Nations, Inuit and Métis artists; Black and racialized artists; 2SLGBTQIA+ artists; disabled artists; newcomers; rural and remote artists; youth and emerging artists; and creators whose perspectives have historically been underrepresented in public art spaces.
There is a limit of one submission per artist. Full details for artwork specification, fees and more can be found within the online submission form.
HOW TO APPLY
Artists are asked to provide:
- Artist or collective name
- City/community and province/territory
- Indigenous Nation/community, if applicable and if the artist wishes to identify it
- The Door/region being submitted for
- A short artist biography (maximum 500 characters)
- A short description of the proposed or existing work (maximum 1,000 characters)
- A file of the proposed artwork or draft
- Any accessibility information or considerations the selection team should know
Submission deadline: September 23, 2026
Festival dates: December 18, 2026 – January 10, 2027
Location: Stratford, Ontario
Artist Fee: $250 + HST per successful submission for limited rights to display the artwork for the duration of the festival
Submission form link: SUBMISSION FORM NOW CLOSED
Previous examples of THE DOORS interactivity: LINK
Lights On Stratford 2026/27 will celebrate CANADA: NORTHERN LIGHTS, showcasing artists and stories from across the country and inviting visitors to experience Stratford in a whole new light.
Questions and inquiries please email:
Kaileigh Krysztofiak
General Manager, Lights On Stratford
kaileigh@lightsonstratford.ca