Guidelines for Writers

PARACHUTE publishes critical texts on contemporary Canadian and international art, and all aspects of the contemporary art world, including visual art, film, video, museology, as well as broader cultural phenomena. Texts are interdisciplinary and can adopt a variety of theoretical, methodological, and critical approaches.

The magazine publishes four times a year (i.e., in January, April, June, and October). Each issue is conceived around a central theme, and each new issue functions much like an independent book. PARACHUTE publishes articles, interviews, and artists' projects specifically relating to the overall theme of a given issue. Debate pieces and book reviews are also published in PARACHUTE, but these do not necessarily have to follow the issue's thematic.

PARACHUTE examines proposals on an on-going basis, and they can be sent in at any time. Proposals should not exceed 250 words, and it is advisable to include supplementary information (i.e., press releases), if available. It is our objective to publish texts that demonstrate pertinence to newly developing trends in the art world, originality of thought, clarity of expression, and soundness of methodology.

FULL-LENGTH ARTICLES AND INTERVIEWS

Articles and interviews are generally about 2,500 words in length. The decision to translate a particular text is made after it has been accepted and depends on the context of the issue in which it will appear. Interviews feature an introduction to contextualize the interviewee. A two- or three- sentence biography of the author is included at the end of each article.

"ECHOES/SHIFTS"

The "Echoes/Shifts" section is a forum devoted to contemporary topics of controversy or special interest. The length of texts is between 2,000-2,500 words.

BOOKS AND MAGAZINES

This section features reviews of recent publications such as critical/theoretical monographs, anthologies, catalogues, artists' books, or special issues of magazines. To be considered for this section, reviewed books must have been published within one year prior to the publication date of the PARACHUTE issue they are intended for. Reviews should not exceed 300 words in length. Headings should include the book's author, title, publisher, city of publication, year, whether illustrations are in black-and-white or colour, and the number of pages (counting the blank sheets at the end, but not the endpapers, which should turn out to be divisible by 4). Please note that there are no footnotes in this format, so bibliographic references should be incorporated into the text.

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This forum for exhibition and cultural reviews is a black-and-white, newspaper-like insert that is also available for free at selected outlets in Montréal. The length of reviews ranges between 1,000-1,500 words. Reviewed exhibitions must have opened in the six months prior to the publication date of the PARACHUTE issue they are intended for.

There are no footnotes in this format, so bibliographic references should be incorporated into the text. The header should include: the title of the show (and the artist's name, if applicable), the venue, the city, and the exhibition dates. It would be helpful if press releases were included with the text, so that the spelling of names, etc., can be double-checked. A single sentence biography of the author is included at the end. Please include 4-6 images of the artworks in the exhibition. Proposals can be submitted by post, e-mail, or fax. English authors should contact Eduardo Ralickas, whereas French authors should contact Marie-Eve Charron. Their contact information is printed below.

IMAGES

When a text has been accepted for publication, we ask that authors provide images relevant to their topic. PARACHUTE is a non-profit organization; therefore, we do not have a budget to pay for image-related publication rights. Generally, images are provided by the authors free of charge with prior consent from the artists (or the galleries representing them).

PARACHUTE can utilize photographs, slides, transparencies, and digitized images (high resolution, 300 ppi or greater, saved at about 9" x 7"). We accept images sent by e-mail or on disk. PARACHUTE publishes in colour and black-and-white. Please note that we require approximately 10-20 images per article. Please identify each image with the artist's name, title of the work, year of completion, media used, dimensions, photographers' name (if possible), and photo credits, as well as the contact person and address to whom the image should be returned. After publication, all images are sent back along with a complimentary copy of the magazine.

DEADLINES AND SUBMISSION OF TEXTS

Deadlines for articles and interviews are generally four months before publication; for debates and reviews it is three months. Texts can be submitted by e-mail or disk, along with a hard copy for reference. PARACHUTE uses Microsoft Word software on a Macintosh platform, and can translate several other word processing programs.

SPRING ISSUE (April) Articles: December 1 Reviews: January 1
SUMMER ISSUE (June) Articles: February 1 Reviews: February 15
FALL ISSUE (October) Articles: May 1 Reviews: May 15
WINTER ISSUE (January) Articles: October 1 Reviews: November 1

Please provide full contact information when submitting your text (i.e., postal address, work and home telephone numbers, fax, e-mail). For book reviews, our office also needs the postal address of the publisher so that a complimentary copy of the magazine can be sent.

PUBLICATION CONTRACTS

PARACHUTE enforces an equitable policy that seeks to recognize the professional status of art critics. Once the editorial committee accepts a text for publication, two copies of a publication contract will be sent to the author. Both copies must be returned to PARACHUTE in order to be countersigned by the Editor. One copy will be sent to the author, and one will be stored in our archives. Our standard contracts stipulate the rights and responsibilities of both the author and the publisher. Please note that authors remain the sole copyright holders of their texts. Payment is conditional on the completion of a publication contract.

CONTACTS

Please feel free to contact the appropriate PARACHUTE editor in order to discuss the pertinence, timing, and content of your proposal.

Eduardo Ralickas
Assistant Editor (English texts)
e.ralickas@parachute.ca

Marie-Ève Charron
adjointe à la rédaction (textes en français)
m.charron@parachute.ca

PARACHUTE
4060 boul. St-Laurent, #501
Montreal (QC) Canada H2W 1Y9
t (514) 842-9805
f (514) 842-9319
www.parachute.ca