Proposals due June 3, 2026 for the Spring 2027 Issue
If you are selected to contribute to the issue, you will be notified in late June and a draft of your assigned submission (approximately 1,500 words) will be due in late August 2026.
Theme—Between the Lines: Language in Exhibitions
There are few issues facing exhibition-makers as evergreen as what makes a good wall label. There are also few issues as divisive. After well over a century of visitor research into the effectiveness of labels and countless books, articles, guidelines, tips, and tricks for writing more effective labels, standards still vary widely across institutions—and even across exhibitions staged by the same institution. Add to this the failures of language itself, from its gendered, racist, cultural, and classist assumptions to its (in)accessibility for large numbers of people, and one might be forgiven for asking why labels are still such a ubiquitous communication strategy. Exhibition last broached this topic specifically in its Spring 2016 issue, “The Power of Words: Written, Spoken, Designed.” With all that has happened in the intervening decade, from a pronounced rightward drift in Western politics that has made language as hotly contested as ever to the rise of ChatGPT and other large language models capable of writing for us, we want to check in to see how practitioners are shaping the present and future of exhibition communication through labels and beyond.
Proposals for this issue might address:
- Delivery Methods: How is language being used within your exhibitions? Is it delivered primarily through graphics, audio, or some other means? How does the delivery method shape the choices you make in terms of tone, length, formality, etc.?
- Voice: Who has a say in the words that go into your exhibitions? How is content generated and by whom? How does your institution center or draw on expertise and lived experience beyond the voices of in-house collections experts?
- Politics and Censorship: What happens when language is contested or censored by those within or outside an institution? How do museums maintain the integrity and nuance of their content in an age of polarization and misinformation?
- Accessibility: What accessibility considerations go into not only how you design text but how you write it? How do you design graphics for greater accessibility? What does multilingual interpretation look like today? What is the role of multimodal interpretation in ensuring that the written word is a choice and not a default for visitor engagement?
- Authorship: Who is writing your exhibition content? Has your institution committed to human-generated content or are you experimenting with AI? Do you feature content authored by community members, artists, and others outside your institution? How do you manage these relationships and is your approach to editing such content different?
- Tone and Vocabulary: Who are you speaking to and how? What guides the choices your institution makes in how it engages with its audience(s) through written and spoken language? What resources do you draw on and how do you train staff to communicate?
- Choreography: How do collections, graphics, design, and interactive elements work together? How do you choreograph an exhibition to enhance the impact of collections and their interpretation? What design features—seating, pacing, placement—increase engagement with objects and interpretation?
Proposals can focus on a specific exhibition, provide an overview of exhibitions and practices, or offer an insightful review of current literature and other resources to help elucidate core practices. The exhibitions and/or elements discussed can be created by or for museums of all disciplines, historical sites, galleries, institutions that collect and display living collections, or others. Proposals might come from designers, exhibit developers, interpretive planners, curators, writers, educators, or others who create and contribute to exhibitions at all stages of their careers. In all cases, accepted authors will be expected to write articles that illuminate larger issues. Exhibition descriptions should be critical and analytical, and theoretical research and evaluation findings (even if informal) must be used to support arguments for the strengths and weaknesses of a project.
A Note About AI
Authors are expected to write their own articles, without the use of AI (large language models, ChatGPT, etc.). This includes using AI to edit your submission (beyond Word’s spelling or grammar check features). If authors plan to use AI to assist with data collection or other research functions to facilitate the creation of their articles, this use must be disclosed and properly cited (more detailed information will be provided if your proposal is selected).
Exhibition does not use AI in any of its editorial processes. All submissions will be reviewed by a panel of your peers with many decades of combined experience who are all committed to creating meaningful content for our field. We believe this human-centered approach results in articles that honor your individual voice while protecting your intellectual property. We welcome first-time authors and ESL authors and will provide additional editorial support as needed.
How to write and submit a proposal
There are two parts to a proposal (which must be submitted as a Word document):
Part 1: Description (400 words max)
The description must:
- Include a proposed title for the article (proposed titles should be brief, interesting, and illuminating).
- Clearly and succinctly convey what the article’s thesis will be.
- Indicate the approaches, strategies, or knowledge that readers will take away from the article.
- Convey how the article would raise questions or illuminate larger issues that are widely applicable (especially if the proposal focuses on a single project).
Please note that accepted articles will be expected to provide critical, candid discussions about issues and challenges, successes and failures, and to provide some level of evaluation and/or theoretical grounding.
Part 2: Brief Bio
Please provide a brief bio (no more than one paragraph) for each author that describes their background and qualifications for writing the article (please do not include resumes or CVs).
Please send all proposals as Word documents via email to Jeanne Normand Goswami, Editor, Exhibition at: jeanne.goswami@gmail.com. Submissions from colleagues and students around the world are welcomed and encouraged.
Deadlines: Proposals are due June 3, 2026. Our editorial advisors will vet proposals in a blind review process, and you will be notified of acceptance or non-acceptance in late June. Articles of 2,000 to 3,000 words maximum, along with high-resolution images, will be due in late August.
Other ways to contribute
Would you like to contribute to Exhibition but don’t have a project that fits the call? We are looking for volunteers to contribute to the journal as book reviewers and exhibition critique writers.
What we’ll need:
If you are interested in being considered for these opportunities, please let us know:
- Your name, title/role, institution (if applicable), geographic location (so we can match you with exhibitions in your area), and any areas of particular interest or focus (e.g., are you a public history professional, art historian, scientist, or designer? Do you have experience with content development or museum education?).
- Whether you are interested in writing book reviews, exhibition critiques, or both (NOTE: Book reviewers will receive a complimentary copy of the chosen book).
- If you have a specific idea in mind for either a book review or exhibition critique, please provide a brief (150-word max) description that includes why you think it would make a good addition to this issue (NOTE: you do not need to have a specific idea to be considered).
Please send requested information via email to:
Jeanne Normand Goswami, Editor, Exhibition at: jeanne.goswami@gmail.com. Submissions from colleagues and students around the world are welcomed and encouraged.
Deadlines: All information is due June 3, 2026. Book review and exhibition critique submissions will be considered by our editorial team alongside article proposals in June 2026. If you are selected to contribute to the issue, you will be notified in late June and a draft of your assigned submission (approximately 1,500 words) will be due in late August 2026.
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