Presented by the Cass Group, the Cass Art Prize 2026 has been launched, with the aim of championing contemporary art from across the UK and the Republic of Ireland, with a £10,000 cash prize awarded to the overall winner of the competition, with additional prizes worth over £20,000, including a Students Award and an Art Educators Award. The prize-giving at The Bomb Factory in London in the autumn will be followed by an exhibition featuring shortlisted artists.
Entries will be judged by a panel of guest judges with extensive knowledge and experience across the art industry, and there are category prizes specifically for oil, watercolour, acrylic, pastels, drawing & sketching, 3D artwork, mixed media & printmaking to ensure a wide range of art is represented.
The Large-Scale Artwork Award will make its debut, and there will be a series of awards offering professional development for artists, including the Solo Show Award supported by Soho Revue, the Development Award supported by Contemporary Art Academy, and the Showcase Award supported by The Other Art Fair.
Submissions are now open until 12th May. Information on entering is available on the Cass Art website and a video about the awards can be found on Cass Art’s Instagram page. The private view and prize-giving ceremony will take place at The Bomb Factory in Marylebone in London on 5th Nov, and the public exhibition will run 6th – 14th Nov.
