Art competitions can provide some great opportunities to artists irrespective of whether they win or not. Not only do they give exposure and present a chance to showcase your work at exhibitions, but also prove to be an excellent morale booster for your art career. This in turn will increase your self-confidence as well as help you evolve and grow as an artist. 

Generally, the selected or shortlisted artists receive recognition, sizeable rewards and some great opportunities to exhibit, promote and/or sell their work. Several competitions often double up as art exhibits where artworks are up for sale, thereby providing artists with a shot at earning money in addition to possibly winning a prize.

The jury in an art competition is usually composed of prominent and well-known personalities from the art world, with considerable amount of experience and a good sense of the current market. This makes art competitions a great means of networking. Prizes are appropriately chosen so as to benefit artists, be it in the form of an opportunity to participate in an exhibition, a cash prize or promotional opportunities.

Winning an art competition is a great achievement as it is another feather that artists can add in their cap and therefore their CV. However, just entering the competition is big in itself as it provides you with recognition as well as a platform to prove yourself and your skill as an artist.

Moreover, entering art competitions can help in proving to yourself that you can be serious about your art. It shows that you are willing to put effort into it, and you think that your art deserves to be recognized more widely.

I consider art competitions integral to my artistic journey, as they help me get the much needed exposure and recognition, which are more important to me than the monetary gains which come in the form of rewards or prizes. It is one such art competition which I entered recently that has given me the much required boost in confidence. The competition was organized by Art Chitrakala, an organization registered with the Government of India. It provides a platform to artists from all over India to showcase, promote as well as sell their art. They organize monthly contests at “All India National Level” wherein the selected winners get an opportunity to get featured on their page and sell their work.

It was an honor and a privilege for me to be able to send my entries for the November 2020 art contest organized by Art Chitrakala, wherein a minimum of 1 and a maximum of 5 artworks had to be sent. I am absolutely thrilled to share with you all that one out the five pieces that I had entered, one was selected for a Consolation Prize! I was also greatly honored to receive the Emerging Artist Award, being one among the 250 winners from all over the country. Here are snapshots of the shortlisted artworks and the respective certificates:

It has been an extremely overwhelming and humbling experience for me to be bestowed upon with these rewards, being my very first. To see my work displayed on the pages of The Art Chitrakala website has helped endorse my faith in myself as an artist. I have been making art for just about ten years now and this has invoked mixed emotions of satisfaction, joy, accomplishment, and personal honor.

 More than the cash prize and the awards, it is the recognition that counts, making the entire experience ever so memorable. This one will always hold a special place in my heart and I’m thankful to Art Chitrakala for providing me with this platform. Winning in this competition has fueled my passion further and inspired me to work harder.