The 6th John Ruskin Prize Calls for Entries: Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken

The 6th John Ruskin Prize Calls for Entries: Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken

The 6th John Ruskin Prize is now open for submissions, inviting artists, designers, and makers from around the world to participate.

With a theme of "Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken", this renowned art competition offers £8,000 in awards, including a top prize of £3,000.

The deadline for entries is Wednesday, September 20, 2023, at 5pm BST.

The John Ruskin Prize aims to attract entries from a wide range of artists and makers celebrating creativity in all mediums, encompassing drawing, painting, print, sculpture, photography, textiles, animation, digital art, performance, installation, and mixed media art among others.

Up to 40 artists will be selected to show their work in an exhibition at Trinity Buoy Wharf in London from 1 to 18 February 2024. Taking home a total of £8,000, the award winners will be announced on 31 January 2024.

For the first time, The John Ruskin Prize opens to international entries, allowing artists, designers, and makers working outside the UK to participate and receive a dedicated prize, worth £1,000. Submissions for this category must be digital, as the judging will be conducted digitally, eliminating the need to ship physical artworks for exhibition.

Artworks in a diverse range of media are welcomed, including animation, ceramics, collage, digital art, drawing, glasswork, installation, metalwork, painting, performance, photography, printmaking, sculpture, textile, and typography, among others.

Entrants are invited to respond to the theme of The 6th John Ruskin Prize, Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken, in their submissions. The works can be recent creations or up to three years old, as long as they represent or interpret the theme. Individual artists, designers, and collectives are all eligible to apply.

Jane Barnes, Executive Director of The Big Draw, commented: "I am delighted The Big Draw is launching the 6th John Ruskin prize, with its theme, Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken. The last John Ruskin Prize was in 2019, and during those short four intervening years, we have encountered a myriad of unprecedented experiences, which on a global level, turned our lives upside down, and for many continues to do so.”

"The theme presents a unique opportunity to take stock of where we are now as individuals, taking a breath, noting how experiencing that extraordinary time has changed our perception of the world. It feels natural that art, in all its forms, is given the space to explore this. I know personally, my life will never quite be the same."

Presented by The Guild of St. George and visual literacy charity The Big Draw, The John Ruskin Prize upholds the values of John Ruskin, the radical 19th-century writer, art critic, polymath, and advocate for art's power to reveal universal truths. This uniquely multi-disciplinary prize offers a platform for artists to explore and challenge artistic boundaries while honouring Ruskin's influential legacy of recognizing and supporting artists, designers, and makers who defy categorization and embrace interdisciplinary practices.