About this Event
About the Exhibition
Some questions are ancient: what is matter made of, what animates our bodies, where does our past go, how much of our lives are shaped by chance? But the experience of asking these questions is always new. In an era of hyper-productivity, algorithmic speed, and instant gratification, In With the Old is a moment to return to fundamental practices, materials, and uncertainties that have reappeared throughout generations. Set in an active brewery, the exhibition takes fermentation as its point of departure.
Practiced for thousands of years across nearly every culture, and still an essential part of contemporary life, fermentation has been adapted and refined. It offers no instant gratification and asks for what our moment resists: patience, proper containment, the cultivation of living systems, and it cannot be forced or accelerated, even when it appears that nothing is happening. It is also a material process that begins with the simplest things such as grain, water, salt, time, and a vessel to hold them. Nothing is added nor manufactured. What emerges is something new, a living microbial of cultures, yet is made entirely of what was already there. Even with generations of knowledge behind it, the outcome is never fully guaranteed. Fermentation lets us sit inside the uncertainty, find productivity in waiting, and reflect on our own cultures.
In With the Old is asking for artwork that considers the necessity of slow transformation, what to do with what we inherit, natural cycles, and the act of revisiting the same questions as different people, in different conditions, and yielding something new each time. Themes could include but are not limited to material transformation, slow alchemy, biological process, interconnectedness, organic material, tradition, ritual, and art-making techniques from the past.
Artists, both emerging and established, are invited to interpret this prompt from any angle and through any medium.
"I know when I go
All my particles disband and disperse
And I’ll be back in the pulse"
– Fiona Apple's I Want You To Love Me
In With the Old is a part of San Diego Art Directory's Activated Spaces program.
Submission Requirements
Wall-hung and ceiling-hung work (size is not to exceed 20” x 20”)
Work must be wired and ready to be exhibited
Applicants must reside in San Diego County
Details and Deadlines
Submission deadline: November 13, 2026
Selected Artists Announced: November 20, 2026
Confirmation Window: November 20-27th, 2026
Installation and artwork drop-off: November 30th - December 4th
Opening Reception: To be announced
Exhibition dates: December 2026 through February 2027
Entry Fees
$22 for up to two pieces and $35 for up to four pieces.
Entry fees cover organizing and curating costs and do not guarentee inclusion in the exhibition.
Pro-Artist Sales Model:
Artists retain 90% of artwork sales.
The remaining 10% supports the programs of San Diego Art Directory.
How to Enter
- Register and pay your entry fee through Eventbrite.
- Check your confirmation email! Inside, you will find the link to the Artist Intake Form.
- This is where you must upload your artwork images and provide artist details.
- If you don’t see the email within 10 minutes, check your spam/junk folder. The subject line will include: “Event Registration Confirmation.”
Still don’t see it?
Please contact [email protected] for assistance. All artist communications are handled through the San Diego Art Directory.
About The Curator
Emma Catacutan holds a BA in Studio Art from the University of California, San Diego, and is an artist, curator, and community organizer. She is the founder of An Interval, a San Diego based curatorial series that utilizes industrial materials such as wood pallets and milk crates to display artwork. Each is a temporary intervention to celebrate contemporary art, foster relationships, and treat exhibition-making as an ongoing social practice.
In addition to her curatorial practice, Catacutan is an exhibiting artist exploring themes of the inanimate observer, queerness, and femininity across painting, photography, sculpture, and installation.
Event venue & nearby stays
Chula Vista Brewery, 294 3rd Ave, Chula Vista, United States
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.