23rd Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition
Call for Entry: 23rd Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition
Deadline: November 20, 2025
Price: $15 for 1-5 single images, $20 for 6-12 series submission
23rd Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition, “I Know Why the Mockingbird Sings,” at the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts, on view February 6 – May 2, 2026
The Turchin Center for the Visual Arts (TCVA) is excited to announce the call for entry to this year’s upcoming 23rd Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition exhibition. This year’s exhibition will be juried by Ty Murray, artivist and Director of Art & Communications at The Bottom, a nonprofit cultural organization in Knoxville, TN, who chose, “I Know Why the Mockingbird Sings” as this year’s exhibition theme. Murray says:
“Joy is at the heart of my creative practice. My gears were turning for a theme that could convey the freedom that joy embodies, like the feeling of an uncaged bird taking flight… A title with a twist on Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969) came shortly after.
In Appalachia, where memories move through mountains and stories echo through hollers, joy can be an act of devotion or defiance. This year’s theme invites photographers to tune into the moments that heal, harmonize, uplift and unburden.
What lightens your spirit, sends you soaring, or sways softly in the background of your day-to-day? From a kitchen table to a dance floor, to an open field and beyond, show us where your joy takes root. Whether carved in solitude, shaped by community, inspired by nature, or nurtured through craft, let your lens sing.”
The AMPC is continuing its updated submission process for single-image and series submissions. The single-image submission application will be the most familiar to previous AMPC artists. In lieu of submitting images to themed categories, artists will be able to submit 1-5 standalone images aligned with the theme of “I Know Why the Mockingbird Sings for $15 dollars. The series submission option allows artists to submit 6-12 images from a singular body of work for $20 dollars. Selected artists from this category will show six images chosen by the
jurors from their submitted series, highlighting the AMPC’s vision to support the expansion of Appalachian narratives
The deadline for submissions is November 20, 2025. Artists will be notified of their acceptance on December 12, 2025 and will be expected to deliver their artwork to TCVA in Boone, NC, by January 16, 2026. Artists are responsible for transporting artwork to TCVA. TCVA will provide complimentary return shipping via FedEx to exhibiting artists.
