Submission Deadline:
Friday 30th June 2023 (23.59 GMT)
Entry Fee
free to Enter
Who can participate
Anyone aged 17 and older. If you are 16 or younger please see Sketch for Survival Junior here.
You can live anywhere in the world.
The competition is open to professional, amateur, hobby and student artists. It is free to enter.
Sketch for Survival
A global art initiative in aid of conservation.
Be a part of Sketch for Survival by entering their art competition which is open to everyone. Just 100 artworks are selected from all submissions to be exhibited in London & Edinburgh, as well as competing for their Artist awards.
How does it work?
Sketch for Survival helps to raise vital awareness about species extinction and biodiversity loss while also raising funds for projects around the world.
Just 100 finalists are selected from all competition entries received and ‘win’ a place on their prestigious Sketch for Survival fundraising exhibition tour.
Entries come from all over the world – China, Ukraine, South Korea, Russia, Iran, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Malaysia, Australia & NZ, Canada, the US, Brazil, Iceland, Dubai, Qatar, Turkey, Tanzania, South Africa and most countries in Europe. In 2022 they had more than 90 nationalities participate. The donated artworks are sold via online auction, with all proceeds going to their Project Fund. Over $100,000 USD was raised for nominated conservation projects in 2021.
The submission phase runs from 1 February to 30 June annually. The selection phase is July-August. Exhibitions run September-November.
SKETCH FOR SURVIVAL
Competition Guidelines in Brief:
Anyone aged 17 and over can enter (children aged 16 and under can enter their Sketch For Survival Junior Competition);
There are two categories: Endangered Wildlife and At-risk Wild Spaces (please see full guidelines below regarding what you can enter);
The closing date is 30 June;
Their expert selection panel is led by Internationally renowned artist Gary Hodges;
There are 3 stages to the competition:
Stage 1 – Enter Online: submissions open 1 February and close 30 June
Anyone can enter – it is free to enter. Please ensure your artwork meets the criteria or it will be discounted.
Stage 2 – Longlist Announced: if your piece has been selected by the panel for the Longlist then you will be asked to ship the original artwork to Explorer HQ in Norfolk, UK. The longlist is chosen by their panel using the submission form and artwork image provided when you first entered the competition. The Longlist will be announced on their website on Thursday 13 July. Only those artists on the longlist will be asked to ship their artwork to the UK so the judges can take a closer look at them.
All longlisted pieces are guaranteed a spot in either their Exhibition collection or the Highly Commended collection.
Stage 3 – Collections Announced: the panel review all the artworks in the longlist and make their final decisions. This stage is done in person at Explorer HQ over several days in August. The Exhibition collection and the Highly Commended collection will be announced on their website on Thursday 7 September.
- The Exhibition collection comprises 100 finalists, as chosen by the panel – these will be exhibited at London’s gallery@oxo on the South Bank & Edinburgh’s Dundas Street Gallery before being sold in their online fundraising auction.
- The Highly Commended collection includes all other longlisted artworks – the runners-up will have their artwork offered for sale in aid of their projects in both their pop up shops and their online gallery (the online gallery goes live after the conclusion of their exhibition tour).
Awards:
The 100 finalists in their Exhibition Collection are eligible for their annual awards which include the Leisure Painter’s People’s Choice Award, an award voted for by the public; The Artist Award, chosen by the editorial team of The Artist magazine and the Sketch For Survival 100 Artist of the Year award, selected by their panel – the shortlist for the artist of the year will be announced 14 September. Results in all categories will be announced at their Private View event in London in November.
All participants will receive a digital Supporter Logo.
Please note: no artworks can be returned. Please do not send us your artwork unless they have requested it. Thank you.