Juried Art Competitions 2026–2027: Open Calls Selected by a Named Jury
"Juried" is the word that makes an open call worth entering: it means a named jury or selection committee chose the work, rather than everyone who paid being included. This list collects juried art competitions with deadlines from November 2026 into 2027. Every entry was checked on the organiser's own page — the deadline, the fee, the prize, and the sentence that confirms who does the selecting.
For what the word should guarantee, see What Is a Juried Art Exhibition?; for checking a call that is not on this list, run the fifteen-minute verification routine.
Juried competitions with open deadlines
Every call in this table was checked on the organiser's own page; the date of that check is shown with each entry. Calls that have closed fold away at the bottom.
Submissions close at noon Eastern. Exhibition 6 April – 7 May 2027, after which around 40 works tour the US for a year.
Pastel in every form, plus charcoal, chalk and pencil. Selected work hangs at Mall Galleries, 27 January – 6 February 2027.
Up to ten images per photographer.
For photography students, judged on a set theme. The Youth competition, for entrants under 19, closes 5 January 2027.
Entries close 3 December 2026 at 11:30 GMT; the jury’s final decision is due 12 March 2027.
Adult (18+) and Young (17 and under) competitions; winners are announced in September 2027.
A series of six photographs of plants, gardens or landscapes; shortlisted portfolios are shown and judged from 18 June 2027.
Single Image closes 5 January 2027 at 16:00 GMT; the Series competition closes a week later, on 12 January 2027.
Biennial prize, judged anonymously; exhibition 25 February – 20 March 2027.
Up to six works may be entered and up to four selected; photography is not eligible. Exhibition 25 February – 6 March 2027.
Prints are sent by post, at most 10 × 10 cm and made since 1 January 2024. Exhibition 4 March – 9 May 2027.
Water-based media only: watercolour, acrylic, ink, gouache. Prizes are listed as subject to final confirmation.
The site gives both 14 and 15 February 2027 as the final deadline; the earlier date is shown here. Winners are announced 11 April 2027.
Recently closed (4)
One winner from one image. Any 2D or 3D medium; AI-generated work is not accepted.
Three categories: a single photograph, a series of three to five, and scientific or medical imaging. Illustration, moving image and AI-generated images are excluded. The prize is named for 2027; entries close in October 2026.
Applications are free; selected work is shown in 22,000 m² of a former iron foundry and an 80,000 m² sculpture park, 5 June – 3 October 2027. Up to ten images per application.
Up to three works per artist. Judged by an international jury; finalists receive diplomas and an evaluation.
Deadlines and fees are read from each organiser’s own page on the date shown with the entry. They do change — check the organiser’s site before you prepare an entry.
Painting and drawing
The Mall Galleries societies in London select their annual exhibitions through committees of members. The Royal Society of British Artists accepts painting, drawing, sculpture and printmaking from any artist aged 18 or over, at £22 a work (£14.50 for artists aged 35 or under), with a £10,000 award for excellence among its prizes. The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours takes water-based media only, with prizes listed at over £15,000. In New York, the American Watercolor Society's annual international exhibition is selected by a panel of its Signature members from more than a thousand submissions, according to the society.
Submissions close at noon Eastern. Exhibition 6 April – 7 May 2027, after which around 40 works tour the US for a year.
Pastel in every form, plus charcoal, chalk and pencil. Selected work hangs at Mall Galleries, 27 January – 6 February 2027.
Up to six works may be entered and up to four selected; photography is not eligible. Exhibition 25 February – 6 March 2027.
Water-based media only: watercolour, acrylic, ink, gouache. Prizes are listed as subject to final confirmation.
Recently closed (3)
One winner from one image. Any 2D or 3D medium; AI-generated work is not accepted.
Applications are free; selected work is shown in 22,000 m² of a former iron foundry and an 80,000 m² sculpture park, 5 June – 3 October 2027. Up to ten images per application.
Up to three works per artist. Judged by an international jury; finalists receive diplomas and an evaluation.
Deadlines and fees are read from each organiser’s own page on the date shown with the entry. They do change — check the organiser’s site before you prepare an entry.
Photography
The largest photography awards publish their jury arrangements in their rules. The Natural History Museum appoints a jury of a chair and judges for Wildlife Photographer of the Year; Bird Photographer of the Year and the World Sports Photography Awards — the latter free to enter — are decided by panels of judges; and the RBSA Photography Prize in Birmingham selects anonymously, so the work is judged without the name.
Up to ten images per photographer.
For photography students, judged on a set theme. The Youth competition, for entrants under 19, closes 5 January 2027.
Entries close 3 December 2026 at 11:30 GMT; the jury’s final decision is due 12 March 2027.
Adult (18+) and Young (17 and under) competitions; winners are announced in September 2027.
A series of six photographs of plants, gardens or landscapes; shortlisted portfolios are shown and judged from 18 June 2027.
Single Image closes 5 January 2027 at 16:00 GMT; the Series competition closes a week later, on 12 January 2027.
Biennial prize, judged anonymously; exhibition 25 February – 20 March 2027.
The site gives both 14 and 15 February 2027 as the final deadline; the earlier date is shown here. Winners are announced 11 April 2027.
Recently closed (4)
One winner from one image. Any 2D or 3D medium; AI-generated work is not accepted.
Three categories: a single photograph, a series of three to five, and scientific or medical imaging. Illustration, moving image and AI-generated images are excluded. The prize is named for 2027; entries close in October 2026.
Applications are free; selected work is shown in 22,000 m² of a former iron foundry and an 80,000 m² sculpture park, 5 June – 3 October 2027. Up to ten images per application.
Up to three works per artist. Judged by an international jury; finalists receive diplomas and an evaluation.
Deadlines and fees are read from each organiser’s own page on the date shown with the entry. They do change — check the organiser’s site before you prepare an entry.
Printmaking
The Ottawa School of Art's International Miniature Print Biennale is open to professional printmakers worldwide, for prints no larger than 10 × 10 cm sent by post, with Prizes of Excellence across five categories.
Up to six works may be entered and up to four selected; photography is not eligible. Exhibition 25 February – 6 March 2027.
Prints are sent by post, at most 10 × 10 cm and made since 1 January 2024. Exhibition 4 March – 9 May 2027.
Deadlines and fees are read from each organiser’s own page on the date shown with the entry. They do change — check the organiser’s site before you prepare an entry.
How to read a jury before you enter
- Named or described? The strongest calls name their jurors; established societies often describe a selection committee of members. Both are checkable. "Reviewed by professionals" with no names is the weakest form.
- Independent or discussed? Some juries score separately and average; others meet and debate. Either is fine if the rules say which.
- Anonymous or not? Anonymous judging, as at the RBSA, keeps reputations out of the decision.
- What the fee buys. A per-work fee at a society exhibition funds the show; a fee that rises with every acceptance funds the organiser. See Are Art Competitions Worth It?
Our own guide to what judges look for covers the criteria most juries score.
Curatone.art competitions
Every Curatone.art competition is judged by the full jury, each juror scoring every work independently on a ten-point scale. The jury is published by name, past results stay in the winners archive, and entry is free, with a finalist fee only if the jury selects the work. The current call is on the competitions page.
On the other side of the table
Every competition on this page depends on artists, curators and designers willing to judge. If you have the experience, you can apply to become a juror at Curatone.art; how to become an art competition juror explains how organisers choose them.
Frequently asked questions
What is a juried art competition?
A competition in which a juror or a panel selects the works that are shown or awarded from everything submitted. Selection, not payment, decides who is included.
How were these competitions checked?
Each entry was read on the organiser's own page, including the wording that confirms a jury, panel or selection committee. The date of the check is shown with each entry.
Are juried competitions free to enter?
Some are. Many established society exhibitions charge a fee per work, and the table shows it. Curatone.art competitions are free to enter, with a finalist fee only if the jury selects the work.