It’s time! Time for the Nutcase Unframed 2015 Call For Submissions.

During the last year, Nutcase Unframed is the most exciting campaign we have done. It brought us in contact with three great artists – Sandra Ramirez, Ray Moore, and Todd Standish. (See the video that captures the process here.)

Artist Sandra Ramirez makes art for the 2014 shows.

It helped us help them translate great art to great helmets. It helped us donate thousands of dollars to our partner organization World Bicycle Relief. And it was an incredible amount of exciting fun watching those artists create fabulous canvases in front of the crowds at the Eurobike and Interbike shows.

So we are doing it all again – only this time, we’re starting a little earlier, dreaming a little bigger, and getting ready for a cascade of fantastic art ideas from artists all over the world for Nutcase Unframed 2015. Want to get the details of exactly how to submit your unique art idea? Click here.

You might be wondering what kind of art we are looking for. We want to develop art with some relevance to the themes of bicycles and bike riding.

Detail from artwork from Todd Standish, 2014

This doesn’t mean that the art has to have a bicycle in it. It could highlight some of the things that bicycling means, including individual style and personal mobility, irreverent zaniness, freedom, and also, sense of community. It could also be art that can be translated from the 2D world of drawing and painting to the 3D sphere that is a helmet.

What’s in it for the artists chosen to put their art on a Nutcase Unframed 2015 helmet? Well, in addition to the prize money for a finished Nutcase helmet design, there’s the possibility of joining us in the craziness of Eurobike in Bavaria, Germany, and Interbike in Las Vegas, USA. There’s also great exposure for emerging artists through our outreach and show auctions, and from having your artwork on a new helmet. In addition, there’s the excitement of getting to make art in front of enthusiastic and appreciative crowds from around the worlds, as well as the warm and fuzzy feeling of joining our happy-go-lucky family of Nutcases.

Here’s what artist Todd Standish had to say about the experience:

“I was not prepared for the warm reception not only from the generous, passionate, fun, and fabulous Nutcase team, and the folks at World Bicycle Relief, but also from the biking community at large. My fellow artists and I were treated like mini-celebrities,” Todd said. “And though I’ve commuted by bike for two decades I’ve never been active with local groups – after the shows, I left feeling energized by the biking community, and feeling a great bond wth my fellow bikers.”

So start thinking, start working, and also start sharing – please let artists that you know know about the Nutcase Unframed 2015 campaign.