Hagerstown Seeks Photographers to Capture the “Faces of Hagerstown” for New Cultural Trail Exhibition

The Hagerstown Arts & Entertainment District is launching a call for photographers to contribute to the upcoming “Faces of Hagerstown” exhibition, an outdoor photo mural gallery designed to showcase the human experience within the city. According to a press release from the Hagerstown Arts & Entertainment District, this initiative will update the existing display along the Hagerstown Cultural Trail, a prominent pedestrian route leading to Meritus Park. The new exhibition will feature 26 high-resolution, black-and-white photographs, each reproduced at a size of 36” x 36” and printed on durable PVC panels, intended for display for several years. The project aims to celebrate individuals of all ages and backgrounds who live, work, or study in Hagerstown, Maryland, through candid artistic portrayals of their daily lives, reflecting the diversity present in the community.

This competition welcomes photographers of all skill levels and equipment, including those using smartphones. To ensure a broad representation, one-third of the selected photographs will be drawn from submissions by students in Washington County’s educational institutions, one-third from professional photographers and photojournalists regardless of their location, and the final third from any photographer, anywhere, irrespective of age or ability. The selected images will be printed as large-scale, black-and-white reproductions.

To be considered for the exhibition, photographs must have been captured between December 22, 2025, and June 7, 2026. The extended deadline for submissions is June 8, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. The primary and sole prize for selected photographers is the opportunity to have their work featured prominently along the Hagerstown Cultural Trail. Submissions will be evaluated based on creativity, originality, artistic merit, technical excellence, composition, and overall impact, with specific weighting assigned to each criterion.

For submission, photographers are required to upload a completed submission form, a model release form, and their digital photograph files via Dropbox. The images must feature the human face as the central subject and convey the authentic Hagerstown experience. Submissions must be in black and white and meet specific technical requirements: square format, a minimum size of 7,200 pixels wide, a resolution of at least 200 dpi, and a maximum file size of 20 MB. Acceptable file extensions are .jpg or .jpeg. The selection process will involve review by the Public Art & Design Work Group, with winning artists to be announced on June 11, 2026. The installation of the new exhibition is scheduled for completion by July 21, 2026, followed by a public unveiling. Photographers with questions can contact Brittany Arizmendi at barizmendi@hagerstownmd.org.

Article by Mel Anara, based upon information from the Hagerstown Arts & Entertainment District.

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