News & Pitch Calls from Critical Read

Saturday, December 31st 2022

Critical Read wants pitches on two themes


Their website says, “Our mission is threefold: to re-imagine critical writing about the arts; to make American art and art history more accessible and discoverable; and to help artists build sustainable careers. Pitches for these two columns are fee-free.
-- Critical Read: “Critical Reads are artwork biographies. They combine research, reporting and analysis and use a specific work of art as a lens to tell a broader story about art history, culture, and society. Artwork biographies are generally assigned to experienced arts reporters. They are assigned at approximately 5,000 words. Approvals for art should be considered before pitching.” The pitch deadline is 31 December 2022.
-- Profile: pitch an artist for Open Canon: “For our new series, Open Canon, we're looking for stories of underappreciated American artists. We are particularly interested in those writers, artists, and performers whose work has been unfairly overlooked or forgotten because of their race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation. We want short, informative profiles of these American artists whose work hasn't historically been considered canonical but maybe should be. What was their most important contribution to American art history? Was it a particular way of working, an idea, a style?
Please note: This is not the space for contemporary artists. Those interested in pitching stories about contemporary artists should look at our Pitch a Reported Story form.” There’s no pitch deadline for this column. Details here

Deadline: December 31st, 2022

Friday, October 15th 2021

Critical Read is open for pitches

This is a nonprofit organization supporting the promotion of the arts  (nonprofit arts including but not limited to ballet, drama, classical music, opera, jazz, performance, installation, visual art) and culture in the US. “We have a particular interest in deserving works of art that are not (yet) considered canonical. Our priority is works of art by American artists. We are very interested in pitches about works of art by American artists whose legacies have not been adequately protected.” They are accepting pitches for two series: Artwork Biographies (for which there is a pitch deadline), and artist profiles for their Open Canon series (for which no pitch deadline is given).
-- Artwork Biography: These are their deep dives. “These stories are fact-based and narrative-driven. They balance opinion with research and reporting, but their emphasis is on storytelling. You can think of them as non-academic criticism aimed at the general interest reader ... For these stories we are  particularly interested in non-canonical American artists whose legacies  have not been adequately protected. We will consider pitches for stories that touch on works of obscure or vintage pop culture and Americana.” These are typically assigned at 4,000-5,000 words. The pitch deadline is 31 December 2021.
-- Artist Profiles for Open Canon: They want stories of underappreciated American artists. “We are particularly interested in those writers, artists, and performers whose work has been unfairly overlooked or forgotten because of their race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation. 
We want short, informative profiles of these American artists whose work hasn't historically been considered canonical but maybe should be. What was their most important contribution to American art history? Was it a particular way of working, an idea, a style?” They do not want pitches on contemporary artists for this column. Details here.  



Deadline: December 31st, 2021

Saturday, August 21st 2021

Critical Read wants pitches on underrepresented American artists

Critical Read brings the true stories of the American fine, literary and performing arts to a wide readership. They publish artwork biographies (pitches for these will be read from September to December – see guidelines), reported stories, profiles, cultural history, essay, interviews and first person stories. They are accepting pitches for a new series, artist profiles for Open Canon. Their guidelines say, “we're looking for stories of underappreciated American artists. 
We are particularly interested in those writers, artists, and performers whose work has been unfairly overlooked or forgotten because of their race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation. 
We want short, informative profiles of these American artists whose work hasn't historically been considered canonical but maybe should be. What was their most important contribution to American art history? Was it a particular way of working, an idea, a style?”  They are also currently accepting both submissions and pitches for reported stories, scenes, interviews, and cultural history essays. Details here.