The 9th John Ruskin Prize: Not for Present Delight

About this call

The John Ruskin Prize, founded by the Guild of St George, organised by Parker Harris under the administrative umbrella of The Big Draw and supported by The Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust, opens its 9th edition to artists, designers and makers, amateur or professional, from anywhere in the world. This year's theme, Not for Present Delight, takes its name from Ruskin's The Seven Lamps of Architecture and asks what it means to make work with an awareness of consequence, and whether art must serve a purpose beyond itself. Work in any 2D or 3D medium is accepted, from painting, drawing and print to sculpture, ceramics, textiles, glass, metalwork, photography, film, animation, digital work and performance presented on film. Up to 80 artists will be shortlisted for an exhibition at Trinity Buoy Wharf, London, from 28 January to 21 February 2027, with winners announced at the awards ceremony on 27 January 2027. The judges include Adam Nathaniel Furman, Clare Twomey, Ishbel Myerscough and Miranda Forrester, chaired by Nichola Johnson of the Guild of St George.

Who can apply

• Open to applicants of any nationality
• Medium: Painting / Drawing / Printmaking / Sculpture / Ceramics / Textile / Photography / Video / New Media / Installation / Performance / Mixed Media
• Entry fee: £25
• Open to artists, designers and makers of all nationalities, aged 18 and over, amateur or professional, working anywhere in the world; individuals and collectives may apply (a collective enters under its collective name, and any prize money is shared among its members). Work must have been made in the past 4 years and must respond to the theme Not for Present Delight. Up to three artworks per entrant; installation pieces made of multiple smaller works, diptychs and triptychs count as a single artwork. Entries are digital and judged digitally: up to three JPEG images per artwork, each under 5MB. The online form asks for the medium (2D or 3D, with installation instructions for 3D), whether you used AI, dimensions and weight, year of completion, price, the work's relevance to the theme, whether you would be open to the work going on tour, an artist statement, and whether you are an international artist who will exhibit; you confirm that the work was created by a human. Size limits: framed 2D work no more than 2.4m in any dimension; textile installations such as wall hangings may use the height of the room (4.5m), with a maximum width of 4m that can be discussed if larger; 3D work no more than 2.4m in its longest dimension and 60kg; film or video no more than 10 minutes at submission stage (MP4 or MOV), and it can be longer at the exhibition if you say so in your submission. Entry fees: standard £25 for 1 artwork, £40 for 2, £50 for 3; Under 26 £20, £30, £38; international entry £15, £20, £30. Fees are not refunded. Entrants under 26 at the time of submission are eligible for the Alan Davidson Under 26 Prize and must show a valid ID with their date of birth if successful; all other entries are eligible for all other prizes. The Chelsea Arts Club Trust Prize is for a mid-career artist who has been dedicated to their practice for a number of years and is not currently under gallery representation. Results by 11 December 2026. Selected work must be available for two weeks before and after and during the exhibition (28 January to 21 February 2027); delivery to Trinity Buoy Wharf on 21 and 22 January 2027 and collection on 22 and 23 February 2027. International entrants whose work is selected may exhibit it digitally or arrange for the physical work to be shown; they do not have to ship it unless they choose to. Shortlisted artists in the UK pack, insure, frame and supply hanging fixings or installation instructions, provide plinths or other display methods where needed, deliver and remove their own work. The Big Draw takes 30% commission on work sold at the exhibition.