THE ART CIRCLE AWARD 2026

The Art Circle Award 2026, in its sixth edition and supported by Alserkal, is an annual initiative designed to support the local art scene by showcasing emerging and established talent. The award operates through an open call that closes on 10 September 2026 and is open to UAE nationals and residents aged eighteen and over, with no entry fee. Eligible submissions are limited to painting and mixed media works; digital techniques are not permitted, measuring between 40 cm and 80 cm per side, presented in a simple wooden American-style frame with a maximum width of three cm and without glass or Plexiglas. Artwork labelling must include the artist's name, surname, and title on the reverse only; front signatures are not accepted. This year's theme, 'On Mending', invites artists to explore what it means to mend in its widest sense: a city, a body, a people, a planet. Mending is understood not as restoration or total repair, but as an act of remaining present within destruction whilst making something, a stitch, a mark, a color, a form, that insists on continuity. Artists are encouraged to respond to this concept across personal and political registers, from intimate gestures to collective narratives, exploring ruptures that emit stories, scars that become maps, and fragments that evoke wholes. A jury of art and culture professionals will review submissions and select finalists, whose works will be exhibited. The award winner will be announced at the exhibition opening and will receive a financial prize of AED 20,000, with the winning artwork becoming part of The Art Circle Collection and reproduced as Giclée prints for distribution to art specialists, institutional directors, and collectors during 2027 collaborations and exchanges. All finalists receive a certificate of participation and social media coverage.