2026 Creative Native Call for Art
Center for Native American Youth, Creative Native Gallery on cnay.org
- ✓ Hand-verified by Arthead editorial, Nov 4, 2026
About this call
The 9th annual Creative Native Call for Art by the Center for Native American Youth (CNAY) at the Aspen Institute invites young Native American and Indigenous artists aged 5 to 24 living in the United States to submit art responding to this year's prompt: What does an Indigenous Future look like to you? All mediums are welcome, including painting, drawing, pottery, sculpture, photography and traditional works such as beadwork, jewelry, regalia, silversmithing and carving. All qualifying entries are displayed in the online Creative Native Gallery on cnay.org. Judges select one winner in each of four age categories (5 to 9, 10 to 15, 16 to 19, 20 to 24) and one grand prize winner aged 16 to 24, judging blindly on creativity and originality, craftsmanship in use of medium and material, and degree of difficulty for the artist's age. Winners are notified in January 2027.
Who can apply
- United States only
- Medium: Painting / Drawing / Ceramics / Sculpture / Photography / Mixed Media
- Entry fee: See official site
- Open to artists who are Native American or Indigenous, between 5 and 24 years old on December 20, 2026, and currently reside in the United States. Each artist may submit one artwork through the online entry form, with a description of up to 100 words on how it connects to the prompt, an artist bio of up to 100 words, tribal affiliation and the medium, and up to three images of the piece, labelled First Name_Last Name. Image specifications: portrait, 8.5 x 11 in, 250 to 300 ppi, .png, .psd or .ai; for a front and back continuous cover page, landscape 17 x 11 in, divided down the middle, same resolution and formats. Work must be the artist's own original work and respond to the 2026 prompt; non-original computer generated images, images created with generative AI and traced images will not be judged, and an entry that infringes another person's rights is disqualified. By entering, the artist grants the Aspen Institute a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce and exhibit the artwork in any media without further compensation. Artists under 18 need a parent or guardian's electronic signature on the entry form. Only artists aged 16 to 24 are eligible for the grand prize. Late entries will not be judged.