© Van O
Touched. Manipulated, Constructed, Changed, Shaped. Re-shaped. Tweaked, Frobnicated. Straightened. Distorted. Handled. Molded. Doctored. Cooked. Transformed.
Deadline: July 20, 2026
Tuŝis means "touched" in Esperanto. In every medium, subtle or dramatic, straight(ish) or strange, art always shows the artist's touch and a meaning, a "soul" beyond literal subject matter. Tuŝis – Altered States will be a collection of extraordinary examples of "manipulated" images from the international photo community that shows something of each artist's unique touch and singular soul.
Thanks for sharing the call for Tuŝis with your social media contacts!
Submit
NOTE: All photo-hybrids are invited. Use of A.I. components and/or digital painting in creative combination with original photography is welcome. Please keep things "light and lens"-based. Please no exclusively algorithmic or machine-made images.
TO SUBMIT: Create a single e-mail to dekunuarts [at] gmail [dot] com
In the body of the email, (not as attached files), include in plain text these three items:
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BIO: a brief biography (150 words, max) This is published with the portfolio.
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NOTES: a brief but informative (350 words, max) explanation for your submission. This is published with the images, so include what we need to know to appreciate the work. Tell the story. Anything goes: describe your idea, mission, process, technique, sources, themes, or anything that enriches the experience of viewing the art.
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LINKS: URLs for your website and any relevant social media, gallery, publications, etc.
Attach 5 separate image files to the email. Format: 300ppi, .jpg, 20 cm (8 in) on the longer side.
Format filenames exactly: ImageNumber_First_Last_Title_of_Image.jpg
e.g. If your name is Jerry Uelsmann:
1_Jerry_Uelsmann_Undiscovered_Self.jpg
2_Jerry_Uelsmann_Untitled_(Hands_Holding_Water).jpg
etc.
Deadline: July 20, 2026
$35/ for each set of 5 images.
PayPal please send to - @DekUnuMagazine
Cash App please use: $dekunuarts
Venmo: @dekunuarts
Artists retain ownership and all copyrights to submitted work. Winners grant specifically limited permissions for use of their submitted work and words to the project. No other art or submission material is retained for any reason by Dek Unu Arts after jury selections are complete.
Winners
Top 5:
All selected artists' images and links are published in Tuŝis, Altered States will be published and promoted online and in paperback as the August 2026 special edition of Dek Unu Magazine.
Cash Prizes:
The jurors' top selection among 5 winners is awarded $250 USD.
The Paperback
The Tuŝis, Altered States print edition will be published in paperback and e-reader formats. In full-color, the paperback edition is professionally designed, printed on #80 acid-free stock, and perfect-bound between heavier, UV coated covers. The resulting document makes an exceptionally good-looking asset for artists' self-promotion, brand-building and professional development.
Other Benefits:
With the publication of the special edition of Dek Unu, all winners' work, names, and links will be promoted widely via email, web, and Dek Unu's extensive social media network, facilitating identity- and brand-building exposure. After the announcement of winners, Tuŝis, Altered States will showcase the winning work free online for August's 31 days, during which time, three promotional posts go out to our extensive list of web and social media outlets where alt-, experimental, and hard to categorize art is most welcome.
In addition, the presentation catalog of the winners' online exhibit is permalinked for artists' later reference in documentation, resumés, grant applications, show proposals, etc., after the end of the publication month. Dek Unu Arts supplies authenticating correspondence and references to support artists' future endeavors on request.
About Scam Contests
Some contests charge exorbitant submission fees. Some contests advertise big prizes that are not delivered. Some contests harvest art copyrights from creators. Some contests advertise celebrity jurors who do not actually review any of the submissions. Some contests use submitted artwork primarily to promote the sponsors' unrelated businesses. Some contests collect email addresses to share, rent, or sell to others. Scam contests that use techniques like these are anathema and give legitimate contests a bad name.
Please know that we are not the same!
Dek Unu Arts is the parent organization for Dek Unu Magazine. Both Dek Unu Arts (the sponsor of this contest) and Dek Unu Magazine are not-for-profit and exist solely to publish and promote fine art photography and artist photographers. Although some organizations run frequent for-fee calls, the special contest edition of Dek Unu Magazine is the only issue for which an entry fee is collected. Our contests and the sales of print copies of the magazine are used only to provide honoraria for contest winners and to sustain the life of Dek Unu Arts, its websites, its hosting service, its printing service bureau, and all of the costs associated with providing an advertiser-free outlet for the best fine art photographers we can find. Both the magazine and the Dek Unu Arts "office" are volunteer-staffed and we pursue grants and donations to offset costs whenever possible.
About Dek Unu Arts
Helping artist-photographers create and publicize a resumé of significant successes our central mission. Founded by photo-artists for photo-artists, Dek Unu Arts publishes and promotes high-quality fine art photography through monthly editions of Dek Unu Magazine and by sponsoring brand-building announcements, exhibitions, and media and educational events. Sourcing new work with international open call competitions, we advertise winners' work and identities globally, through an extensive list of artists, gallerists, and curators as well as its widely-subscribed web and social media network.
Our goal is to provide a respectable and respectful alternative to (and refuge from) more typical commercial outlets. For us, "respectable" means selecting quality work from artists of all backgrounds and pedigrees, keeping to high curatorial standards, and presenting each edition to an interested and literate audience. For us, a "respectful" magazine puts artists, not advertisers, first. For us, respect creating each issue in close collaboration with its creator, honoring each artist's individual creative vision.
As we are not limited by advertisers, Dek Unu Arts is committed to an open-minded, open-ended aesthetic. All photo genres and techniques are welcome, and our jurors make selections without regard to connections, career stage, or pedigree. We imagine our work as a contemporary Salon des Refusés, and welcome creative wanderers, outcasts, and accomplished, creative adventurers of all kinds.
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dekunuarts [at] gmail [dot] com
Dek Unu Arts
1618 San Silvestro Drive
Venice, Florida 34285
Tel: (860) 706-9946
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