One way to bust artist’s block and keep yourself busy making art is to submit your work to the many juried events and exhibitions in the UK and beyond! A selection of competitions are listed below, many of them awarding substantial prizes for work in 2-D (painting, drawing, print-making, etc.), 3-D (sculpture, installation, etc.), film/video, photography, etc. Most charge a small fee to enter (which often covers administration costs), and should your work be selected, the rewards vary from cash to commissioned work along with the chance to join an exhibition and be included in critical write-ups.
Let me know if you think there are some opportunities that could be added to this list!
Also, click the link to read more practical info about applying to open calls.
Selected London-based art prizes, commissions, etc. (by deadline date)
| Project/event name (click link for more info) | Apply deadline | Event dates |
| Jerwood Project Space | open | bi-monthly |
| Bloomberg New Contemporaries* | Jan 2017 | Jul 2016; 23nd Nov 2016 – 22 Jan 2017 |
| Royal Society of Painters Open Portrait Prize | Jan 2017 | May 2017 |
| Ashurst Emerging Art Prize* | 15 Jan 2017** | Jul-Sept |
| Jerwood Open Forest | 1 Feb 2016 | Nov/Dec 2016 (exhibit), 2017 (commission) |
| BP Portrait Award | Feb 2017 | Jun-Sep 2017 |
| Frieze Artist Award | 10 Feb 2017 | October |
| RA Summer Exhibition | 15 Feb 2017 | Summer |
| Jerwood Makers Open | Feb 2017 | July/August |
| Jerwood Painting Fellowships | Spring | biennially |
| Jerwood/FVU Awards | Spring | Mar-May following |
| Contemporary British Painting Prize | 30 Apr 2017 | Aug-Oct 2017 |
| Jerwood Drawing Prize | Jun/Jul | Sept-Oct |
| May/Jun | Dec 2017 | |
| Derwent Art Prize for Drawing | June 2017 | Sept |
| Griffin Art Prize* and residency | July 2017 | Nov/Dec |
| National Open Art prize | July 2017 | Aug/Sept |
| London Open triennial at Whitechapel | Sept 2017 | July – Sept 2018 |
| John Moores Painting prize at Liverpool Biennial | TBC | Jul – Nov 2017 |
| Columbia Threadneedle Prize | TBC | Sep 2017(London), Jul 2017 (Italy) |
| Lynn Painter-Stainer Prize | 19 Dec 2016 | 6-19 Mar 2017 |
| Jerwood Photoworks | TBC | Nov/Dec? |
| Frieze Foundation Projects | TBC | October |
| Hyundai Commission series at Tate | invite only | Yearly |
* NOTE: These events/open calls are for emerging artists such as those under a certain age, final year BFA/BA/MFA/MA students and/or recent graduates only.
** For the Ashurst Art Prize, early entries received by 18 Dec 2016 can get feedback from our experts
Also keep an eye on these websites…
There are a number of art-related websites, too, where other opportunities are listed on a regular basis, including residencies, projects, collaborations, exhibitions, events, talks, and more.
And let’s not forget the art fairs…
| Biennials | Links | Dates |
| Documenta – Kassel, Germany | http://www.biennialfoundation.org/biennials/documenta/ | 5 yrs |
| Manifesta – European cities | http://manifesta.org/ | even years |
| Nour Festival – London, UK | https://www.rbkc.gov.uk/subsites/nour.aspx | odd years |
| Qalandiya International Biennial – Palestine | http://www.qalandiyainternational.org/ | even years |
| Sharjah Biennale – Dubai, UAE | http://www.sharjahart.org/ | odd years |
| Shubbak Festival – London, UK | http://www.shubbak.co.uk/ | odd years |
| Venice Biennale – Venice, Italy | http://www.labiennale.org/en/Home.html | odd years |
| Annuals | Links | Dates |
| Affordable Art Fair – Battersea, London | http://affordableartfair.com/battersea/ | Mar |
| Art Basel – Basel Germany; Miami; Hong Kong | https://www.artbasel.com/ |
Jun; Dec; Mar |
| Frieze – London, UK | http://friezelondon.com/ | Oct |
| London Art Fair – London, UK | http://www.londonartfair.co.uk/ | Jan |
| Other Art Fair – London, UK | http://www.theotherartfair.com/ | Apr |
| Parallax – London, UK | http://parallaxaf.co/ | Feb |
| SOFA – Chicago, IL | http://www.sofaexpo.com/ | Nov |
