Calling Young Artists of All Abilities for This is Art!
RTÉ I Creative Ireland Programme
With a Prizefund of over €10,000, the This Is Art! Competition is Back!
CALLING YOUNG ARTISTS OF ALL ABILITIES
Almost 10,000 entries were received last year for the first This Is Art! national competition. Now, RTÉ and the Creative Ireland Programme are once again calling on young artists to submit their work.
Celebrating visual art made by young people, This Is Art! invites young artists of all abilities, aged 18 and under, individually or in groups, to create an original piece of art that will be showcased in an online art gallery for generations to come. In so doing, the competition will promote artistic practice among young people and encourage and support creativity, originality and self-expression.
Tania Banotti, Director, The Creative Ireland Programme, says: “The Creative Ireland programme wants to enable the creative potential of every young person in the country. We’re excited to support RTÉ’s This is Art!. Winners will be announced on 11th June for Cruinniú na nÓg – Ireland’s national day of free creative fun for young people.”
Dee Forbes, Director General, RTÉ, says: “When we launched the first This is Art! Competition last year, the volume of entries was truly phenomenal. Even more phenomenal however was the quality of the work submitted. The level of creativity, engagement and inventiveness was remarkable, as was the technical skill and proficiency of entrants across all categories. For RTÉ, as the provider of Ireland’s only dedicated television and online services for children, This is Art! allows us to provide an important outlet for the young artists of the future.”
How it works
The competition is open to all young people of all abilities, aged 18 and under, residing on the island of Ireland and is inclusive of all visual art disciplines.
There are 5 categories:
- Age 7 and under
- Age 8 – 11
- Age 12 – 15
- Age 16 – 18
- Group category
To enter as an individual or a group is simple.
- CREATE a piece of original visual art.
- SNAP or Scan a digital version of it.
- UPLOAD your entry, along with a short artist statement, to rte.ie/thisisart.
All eligible artwork will then be reviewed by an independent panel of judges and exhibited in our This Is Art! online gallery.
Selected works will feature on billboards across the country and on social media.
The Theme
The theme of this year’s competition is ‘This Is Extraordinary’.
The Prizes
A prize fund of more than €10,000 will be awarded across the different categories for further education and art related vouchers.
- Grand Prix Award: One artist in each category will be chosen to receive the This Is Art! Grand Prix Award; a specially commissioned trophy handmade by visual artist Shane Keeling and presenter of the RTÉ series This Is Art Club!
- Commendations: Selected works across all categories will receive Commendation Certificates along with prize vouchers for art materials and a professional review of their work;
- Group Bursaries: Three Group Bursaries, valued at €2,000 per group, will be awarded through which professional artists will facilitate an art experience for your school or group;
- Other: Prizes of bursaries towards art courses, vouchers for art materials and picture framing vouchers will also be awarded.
The Dates
- Opening date for entries is Friday 1st April 2022.
- The closing date for entries is Sunday 1st May 2022.
- Winners will be announced on Cruinniú na nÓg, 11th June 2022.
The Judges
- Annie Fletcher – Director of IMMA, Irish Museum of Modern Art
- Tadhg Crowley – Senior Curator, The Glucksman
- Aideen Barry – Visual Artist
- Amanda Coogan – Visual Artist
- Will Sliney – Illustrator
This Is Art 2021!
Almost 10,000 entries were received last year and are available to view in the online gallery rte.ie/thisisart
The winning entries and selected artworks were also showcased on billboards all over Ireland in association with Local Authorities.
What This Is Art! 2021 winners have said.
Hannah, Cobh – “I was shocked when I won the competition and really appreciated the judges comments, it validated my artistic ability. I felt more confident after winning the competition to create different and more daring work. I really enjoyed the bursary portfolio course, not only did it help me complete a portfolio but also I discovered new mediums and methods of creating art. My grandad was delighted when I won, it made me happy that something I created could inspire such a reaction.”
Mary, Dungarvan – “During Covid times when everything seemed to come to a standstill, the ‘This Is Art!’ competition was a huge encouragement for me and a refreshing expression of creativity. I had entered the competition without expectations. I only wanted to draw. So, to have been a winner among so many outstanding entries was an overwhelming excitement and a great thanks towards the judges. For my prize I joined the Crawford College of Art & Design on their Art Portfolio Preparation Course. It was a thrill to have joined so many amazing artists that inspired me each week with their individuality, imagination and expression of the world through the artistic lens. It was this experience and the wonderful people I had the pleasure of meeting and learning from along the way that has motivated me to continue my artistic journey in the coming years and I couldn’t be more grateful and excited.”
Ard Scoil na nDéise – “We were so thrilled and it was a very exciting time. It was wonderful to have so many kids involved in this project and to win was just wonderful – we’re still punching ourselves!”
Towers Development Group – “Thank you This Is Art! for the opportunity, the boys were blown away by the group prize and so overjoyed that they won, it has meant so much to the boys and us as a project.”
What some of the judges have said about This Is Art!
Tadhg Crowley – “An artist statement can provide that additional insight into the artists motivations and that extra information can allow more people to connect with the work. A statement can reveal something that may not be obvious on first glance. Some artists don’t reveal too much about their artworks because they want viewers to find their own meaning in the work. Think about your own artwork and only share information that you feel is important for the viewer to know.”
Aideen Barry – “What a privilege it is to be a judge of This is Art! For me I will be looking for artworks by artists who are manifesting an experience of what it is to be you or in your world right now. I am looking for the artists of the future and how they are thinking about living in the contemporary world right now.”
Will Sliney – “The artist statement, it’s such a strange thing for artists to do, it’s becoming more and more important for an artist now, because that’s what we care about, we care about the person behind it, we want to know more about you, what inspires you and why you do what you do. That’s one of the most important things about the artist statement. The one piece of advice is be true to yourself, who you are, that’s way more interesting than you often believe it might be.”
Further information and all competition details and terms and conditions are available at www.rte.ie/thisisart
For more on Creative Ireland, visit https://www.creativeireland.gov.ie/en/about/.
About The Creative Ireland Programme
The Creative Ireland Programme is a culture-based, all of government programme which places creativity at the centre of public policy. It is designed to promote individual, community and national wellbeing. The core idea is that participation in cultural activity drives personal and collective creativity. It is built around five pillars one of which is Creative Youth: enabling the creative potential of every young person in Ireland.
You can find out more at www.creativeireland.gov.ie