Part of the advice that I received from our art school private college counselor, Jeanette Nyberg of Tiny Rotten Peanuts blog, is to win art competitions as a way of building your art portfolio. Of course, the first step is finding art competitions to enter (and have enough notice so as not to miss the submission deadline).
Thank you to Jeanette again for this awesome link: 50+ Awesome Art Competitions for High School Students.
Art Competitions for Kids and Teens
Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
My daughter’s art tutor is judging this award which is how we found out about it. Deadlines vary by region. The Boston deadline was December 15, 2014. The Boston competition is through The School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
DEADLINE: varies by region, Boston December 15, 2014
Ages: Grades 7 through 12
Western Governors’ Association is proud to announce its 3rd Annual “Celebrate the West” regional art competition that challenges high school students to create works inspired by their state. Students must be in a school in a WGA member state: Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Colorado, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. Artwork must be two-dimensional and may be created using painting (oil, watercolor, acrylic, etc.), drawing (pencil, colored pencil, charcoal, ink, markers, pastels, etc.) lithography, silkscreen, mixed media, computer graphics, and collages. No photography or video-based submissions will be accepted.
It is easy to enter- students only need to email a photograph of their artwork along with the entry form found on our website. Students are welcome to submit artwork used for other contests or assignments.
DEADLINE: April 30, 2018
AGES: high school students, grades 9-12
The Air Race Classic, the annual all-women cross-country airplane race, announces the first-of-its-kind art contest for girls ages 12 to 17. The theme of the contest is “Cross-Country Flight,” a subject reflecting both the freedom and skill involved in flying the Air Race Classic (ARC).
DEADLINE: All artwork must be postmarked by June 1 and received by June 5, 2016. Winners will be announced on June 24.
Ages: Girls ages 12 – 17 are eligible to compete for the grand prize, the entrant must be a resident of the United States.
Toyota Dream Car Art Competition
Toyota Financial Services (TFS) proudly announces the launch of the U.S. segment of the worldwide Toyota Dream Car Art Contest. Designed to inspire creativity in youth and encourage an interest in the automotive industry, the contest is open to youth, ages 4-15, who are invited to create and submit a drawing of their idea of a “Dream Car” from Monday, September 22 through Saturday, December 13, 2014. Full contest details, along with the official entry form, can be accessed online by clicking HERE. Check out artwork by last year’s U.S. winners HERE!
DEADLINE: September 2015
Ages: 4 – 15
U.S. Kids Magazine Cover Art Competition
For parents and teachers to enter kids.
Send entries, forms, and a school picture to:
U.S. Kids Annual Cover Contest
P.O. Box 567
Indianapolis, IN 46206
We encourage you to use any medium and paper that you would like to use to make your entries look great. Please keep the paper size to 8.5 x 11 inches. U.S. only.
DEADLINE: February 13, 2017
Ages: 2-12
National Book Festival Bookmark Competition
My daughter’s friend won this competition for the state of Massachusetts when she was in 3rd grade. Her prize included meeting the governor of Massachusetts, a giant blow-up bookmark of her winning design, and the pleasure of knowing her bookmark was distributed free to students throughout the state!
Doodle 4 Google is our favorite time of the year – it’s when we get to see all the amazing creativity of kids around the country come to life. For our 8th annual US competition, we’re holding the fun to the fall. So stay tuned and don’t forget to check back here at the beginning of the next school year. September 2015
Animal Rescue TV Monthly Art Contest (International)
We’re asking our young “Animal Rescue” fans (age 16 and under)
to send us drawings of their favorite animals. Every month we will select one drawing to post on our website.
The winner and five runners-up will receive an official
“Animal Rescue” Prize Package.
Only U.S. residents are eligible for prizes.
Telco Productions, Inc.
2730 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 200
Santa Monica, CA 90403
DEADLINE: Last day of each month
Ages: 16 and under
Child Artisan Monthly Art Contest (International)
Entry rules here.
DEADLINE: Last day of each month
Ages: 17 and under
Look and Learn Art (International)
Deadline: Last day of each month
Ages: 18 and under
Frogs Are Green Art Contest (International)
The age groups are 3-6, 7-9, 10-12, and 13-17. The winners are announced on January 15th and shared online. Winning artist’s work is exhibited in galleries and community spaces during the spring for Earth Day and Save the Frogs Day.
DEADLINE: December 15, 2014
Ages: 2-16
Save the Frogs
Contest Rules
(1) The Contest runs annually from January 15 to October 15th.
(2) Submitted artwork must be your original creation!
(3) No tracing of others’ artwork.
(4) You may submit up to three entries per person.
(5) All artwork must refer to SAVE THE FROGS! by including, visibly and legibly:
EITHER
(a) the phrase SAVE THE FROGS! (capitalized, with an exclamation point!)
OR
(b) the phrase savethefrogs.com (lowercase with NO exclamation point)
OR
c) both SAVE THE FROGS! and savethefrogs.com (as in the logo below).
DEADLINE: January 15 to October 15th.
Ages: any age
International Compost Awareness Week Poster Contest (International)
DEADLINE: November 15, 2014
Ages: 3rd Grade through Adult
The contest is for kids in grades K-12, with four contest divisions by age. Over $5,000 in prizes will be awarded to teachers and students. Two contests will run; the first entry deadline is December 3, 2014. The second contest will run from December 3, 2014–April 9, 2015. Teachers can submit students’ art and students can submit their own artwork.
DEADLINE: April 9, 2015
Ages: K-12
Biannual kid’s art contest: the first contest is from January through June; the second contest runs from July through December. Drawings must be original and not traced or copied. First place is $1000, Second Place is $500 and Third place is $250. A submission fee of $5.00 is required. The contest is judged in three categories: ages 6-8, ages 9-12, and ages 13-17; open to kids worldwide.
DEADLINE: June and December
Ages: 6-17
Youthful Expressions Art Contest
Students in grades K-12 (ages 5-18) are invited to participate in this kids’ art competition. Judging is in four age categories, with cash prizes being awarded to kids in 1st-3rd place in each category. Two entrants will also win the People’s Choice Awards and two others will win the Grand Prize cash awards. Cash prizes for all awards range from $5-$50 and are subject to change (may go higher) depending on contest sponsorship. To enter, submit an original artwork that is in line with this year’s contest theme “live slow enough”. There are three art categories: drawing, painting, and digital art. Entries are due by February 27, 2015. (NOTE: There is a $3 fee to enter this contest.)
DEADLINE: February 27, 2015
Ages: K-12
Wildlife Forever
The STATE-FISH ART Contest is open worldwide to all children in grades K -12 in any public, private, or home-school, any youth group, after-school program, youth camp, scout troop, art class, etc., or just an individual kid that wants to enter!
Essentially any child of K-12 age is eligible as long as a responsible adult reads, agrees to and signs their entry form. Only one entry per child will be accepted.
Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation’s Science without Borders® Challenge is an international art competition that engages students to promote the need to preserve, protect, and restore the world’s oceans and aquatic resources.
The Science without Borders® Challenge was created to get students and teachers interested in ocean conservation through various forms of art. This annual contest inspires students to be creative while learning about important ocean conservation issues. The SWB Challenge is open to primary and secondary school students 11-19 years old, with scholarships of up to $500 awarded to the winning entries.
The deadline for entry into this year’s Science without Borders® Challenge is Monday, April 25, 2016.
The theme for the 2016 Science without Borders® Challenge is “Fishing Under the Radar.”This theme was chosen to coincide with a new film the Foundation is producing about fishing.
Western Governors ‘Celebrate the West’ high school art competition
Entrants from WGA member states will create original two-dimensional artwork inspired by their state or informed by living in the West. Students may draw ideas from a variety of sources, including state history, landmarks, natural resources, National Parks and Monuments, people, communities, and culture.
WGA’s inaugural visual arts challenge, sponsored by the Western Governors’ Foundation, is open to high school students in the 19 Western states and three U.S.-flag islands served by the nonpartisan policy association. (Complete list of states below.)
Winning artists will receive cash prizes and their works will be displayed at an upcoming WGA Governors’ meeting, as well as on the WGA website. In brief, here’s how “Celebrate the West” will work:
- Students will submit entries by April 30, 2016. WGA staff will select “Finalists” from states and flag islands, as well as a Grand Prize winner and Second Place. The Grand Prize award is $1,000 with $500 to the Second Place finisher, and $200 to each state finalist.
- Finalists will be displayed at an upcoming WGA Governors’ meeting. They will compete for a Best of Show award voted on by meeting attendees, which include governors and their staff, U.S. Cabinet members, and WGA sponsors.
“Celebrate the West” is open to high school students from Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Colorado, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.
Prizes:
Grand Prize: $1,000
Second Place: $500
State Finalist: $200
Best of Show: $200
DEADLINE: April 30, 2016
Age: Grades 9 through 12 (high school only)
Themes:
- Illustrations of Anton Chekhov‘s works;
- Portrait of Anton Chekhov;
- Landscape in Chekhov‘s works;
- Humor in Anton Chekhov‘s works.Style and Medium:
- Graphic art
- Painting (water-colors, gouache, tempera)
- Decorative and applied arts (ceramics, textile).Dimensions: 62 x 42.5 centimeters (40.4 x 16.7 inches) or smaller.Other:
- artwork should not be framed
- artwork should be signed on the backside (in PRINT characters, in English or in Russian): original work title; author’s first/last name; age; sex; mailing address; country; email; phone or fax
- (for classes, clubs, groups, educational institutions) name and address of the school, first/last name of the teacher
- the parcel with artwork(s) should bear the inscription: “WITHOUT COMMERCIAL VALUE”.
p.s. This one is for adults but teens taking graphic design classes might consider throwing in their hat too!
Print’s 2015 Regional Design Annual
- For only the second time, in 2015 our judges will select a “Best of Region” winner from each of the six regions. The winners will be profiled in Print magazine.
- Anyone can enter the RDA, and everyone is judged on an equal plane, from small firms to solo designers to the big powerhouses. Where you work is irrelevant: Good design conquers all.
- TYPES OF WORK ACCEPTED
- Annual Reports
- Brochures/Catalogs
- Book Covers/Jackets
- Environmental Graphics
- Illustration/Photography
- Invitations/Announcements
- Letterhead/Logos
- Packaging (consumer goods, CDs, etc.)
- Posters/Flyers
- Advertising (print)
- Editorial (magazine and newspaper covers/spreads)
- Self-Promotions
- Wearables (t-shirts, hats, bags, etc.)
- Information Graphics
- Web Design
- Multi-Media Campaign
p.s. More related posts:
My Daughter’s Rhode Island School of Design Pre-College 2016 Experience
Top Art and Design Schools for Undergraduates
p.s. More about Art Colleges from our college tours:
Visiting California College of the Arts
Visiting Emily Carr Art + Design University in Canada
Visiting California Institute of the Arts (CalArts)
Applying to Art School: School of Visual Arts
Visiting West Coast Art Schools & Foodie Stops Nearby
Applying to RISD: Advice from Antonio Peters in Admissions
Tips for National Portfolio Day
Xtreme Week at Mass College of Art
and some fun stuff …
If you are visiting New York City, here are our cheap foodie finds.
45 Art Gifts for Seriously Arty Kids (by my arty daughter)
Our Art Gift Kits for Arty Kids
10 Inspirational Art Books for Arty Kids
My books:
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Food for the Future: Sustainable Farms Around the World
- Junior Library Guild Gold selection
- Massachusetts Book Award Long List
- Selected as one of 100 Outstanding Picture Books of 2023 by dPICTUS and featured at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair
- Starred review from School Library Journal
- Chicago Library’s Best of the Best
- 2023 INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist
- Green Earth Book Award Long List
- Imagination Soup’s 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids
Amazon / Barefoot Books / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Scholastic / Signed or Inscribed by Me
My artist husband would have loved this wonderful resource as a child. He has been drawing since age five.
Hi Barbara,
I had no idea there were so many! I am hoping that my daughter will enter a few of these. At least it will give her ideas for pieces to draw or paint in order to enter! Does your husband enter any art competitions now? He’s probably too busy with the Little Miss History series??
Neat! I will have to see if my kids are interested in entering any of these.
Hi MaryAnne,
Some the animal themed ones seem perfect for your kids!
Thanks, Mia! My daughter is an aspiring artist, so I’ll pass this on to her, and perhaps to her art teacher as well.
Hi Maria,
So glad that your daughter will enter some of these too! They look great!
Would like to be made aware of art contest to enter into for my teen age daugther
Hi Michelle,
The dates for submission should be on each art competition. It’s hard to keep track of them!
I would like to let you know that the new edition of our international art contest has been announced.
Open to children 4-17 y.o. , the subjects:
-Illustrations to Anton Chekhov’s works;
-Humor in Chekhov’s works;
-Landscape in Chekhov’s works;
-Taganrog – the home city of Anton Chekhov.
Thanks for sharing Alexander! I’ll link it here: https://www.samanthasbell.com/9th-international-childrens-art-contest-international/
Is there a fashion drawing book cotest
Good luck everybody 🙂👍🏻
1st ANNUAL EMBERS CREATE ART COMPETITION
2021 Theme: Hope Rising
Eligibility: Anyone 2-25 ears old currently residing in Canada, USA, or Mexico
Deadline: August 31st, 2021
For more info: https://sites.google.com/view/embers-create