2027 ArtFields Festival Artists’ Competition

A visual-art exhibition and competition for the 2027 ArtFields Festival in Lake City, South Carolina. Selected works will be displayed throughout downtown venues from April 9 through May 1, 2027 and considered for conditional cash prizes, including a $50,000 Grand Prize, $25,000 Second Place Prize, two $12,500 People’s Choice Awards, and five $2,000 Merit Awards; these awards are not guaranteed participant compensation.

Applicants must be at least 18 by November 1, 2026 and must have lived for at least six consecutive months before submission in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, or West Virginia. The entry must be one artist-created 2-D or 3-D work in any visual-art medium, completed in or after 2024; work created solely with AI is ineligible, as are previously exhibited ArtFields works. Prior-year winners of the four top awards are ineligible for the subsequent competition. A person may apply either individually or as part of a collaborative group or collective, but not both. Applicants must submit the online form and one to five high-resolution images of the single work (at least 300 dpi/1 MB); proposals are allowed for site-specific and installation work when supported by photographs, sketches, and other documentation. The work must not infringe third-party rights and must remain wholly owned by the artist through the festival. Indoor 2-D work is generally limited to 12 by 12 feet of wall space, while indoor 3-D or installation work is generally limited to 15 feet in any dimension unless ArtFields approves an exception by the deadline. Selected work must remain available for installation beginning March 5 and throughout the festival; top-four award recipients must leave the work with ArtFields/Lake City Creative Alliance for an additional 90-day exhibition. Non-site-specific work must arrive in Lake City March 5–13, 2027; site-specific and installation work must be completed by March 20. Artists are responsible for delivery, retrieval, insurance, required display equipment, and prepaid return shipping. Installation artists must install their own work and arrange assistance. Accepted images, statements, biographies, and artwork information may be used for online and catalog publication, marketing, labels, and social media. Venues receive a 20% commission on artwork sales. The nonrefundable entry fee is $25.