The AXA Art Prize shines a spotlight on the re-emergence of figurative art and the undiscovered stars of its future.

The AXA Art Prize is one of the leading student art competitions in the United States. The competition is open to any style of figurative paintings, drawings, and original printmaking created by undergraduate and graduate art students.

Enter now for a chance to: SHOWCASE your work in front of our panel of jurors from educational institutions across the US, major curators, and world-renowned artists; be FEATURED in the AXA Art Prize virtual gallery and in a live exhibition in New York; and WIN a First Prize of $10,000.

The reason why the AXA Art Prize exists

As one of the largest global insurers, AXA’s purpose is to act for human progress by protecting what matters. Protection has always been at the core of our business, helping individuals, businesses and societies to thrive. Fostering progress and success in all dimensions is part of our DNA. The AXA Art Prize is a way for us to support emerging artistic talent and to give it the platform it deserves.

Established credibility

The competition is built on the legacy of a related prize which ran in the UK for a decade. Now in its fifth year in the United States, the AXA Art Prize has established an excellent reputation as an insightful overview of the best new talent nationwide. We’re thrilled to watch our previous winners achieve further successes at such an early stage: 2018 winner Monica Ikegwu has been signed to a Los Angeles based gallery and Anna Park our 2019 winner has recently held a solo exhibition in Rome.

Unrivalled Exposure

Every effort has been made to provide participants with the highest level of exposure and the perfect opportunity in which to showcase their work. Our top forty finalists are selected by an Exhibition Jury comprising of curators from top museums and galleries Previous jurors included curators from Crystal Bridges, the Brooklyn Museum, Gagosian, the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, the New Museum, the National Gallery (Smithsonian), the Noguchi Museum, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum. Finalists will have their work exhibited internationally on our virtual gallery and will be featured in our live exhibition in New York. The First and Second Prize winners are determined by a panel of prominent artists. In the past this has included major artists such as Bo Bartlett, Sanford Biggers, Julia Chiang, Will Cotton, John Currin, Nicole Eisenman, Rachel Feinstein, Eric Fischl, Arcmanoro Niles, Erik Parker, Nicolas Party, Elizabeth Peyton, Calida Rawles, Peter Saul, Tschabalala Self, Amy Sherald, Laurie Simmons, Salman Toor, and Robin F. Williams.

Prizes

First Place — $10,000 cash prize

Second Place — $5,000 cash prize

Eligibility

Applicants must be currently enrolled in a degree-granting program, either as an undergraduate or graduate student majoring in studio art at a U.S. school. Previous XL Catlin and AXA Art Prize exhibition participants are eligible to participate in the 2023 AXA Art Prize competition; however, they must use a different piece from the one previously exhibited. Previous prize winners are not eligible to submit.

Note: Professor of Drawing & Painting Margaret Morrison is on the regional jury of the 2023 AXA Art Prize.

To learn more and apply

axaartprize.com