The Art Circle Award 2026 Sixth Edition: On Mending

About this call

The Art Circle Award 2026 invites UAE-based artists to submit original paintings responding to the theme On Mending, exploring healing, continuity, scars, fragmentation, resistance, and care in response to personal, social, political, and environmental ruptures. The sixth edition is supported by Alserkal. Each artist may submit one completed artwork that has not previously won a prize in another competition. The winning artwork becomes part of The Art Circle Collection and may be reproduced as Giclee prints for distribution in 2027.

Who can apply

• Domestic applicants
• Medium: Painting / Mixed Media
• Free entry
• Open to UAE nationals and residents aged 18 and over. Artwork must be an original painting with or without mixed media; no digital techniques permitted. Each side must measure minimum 40 cm and maximum 80 cm. Frame must be a simple wooden American-style frame no wider than 3 cm; no glass or Plexiglas. Artist name, surname, and artwork title must be written on the back of the work. One submission per artist; previously prize-winning works are ineligible.