Ithra Announces Open Call for Art Prize

The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) announced an open call for the 7th edition of the biennial Ithra Art Prize, a grant supporting contemporary art across the Arab world. Founded in 2017, the prize offers a valuable platform for artists from the region. With a grand prize of $100,000, the winning artwork will find a lasting home within Ithra's permanent art collection.

 In a significant expansion from previous years, the Ithra Art Prize, through its appointed jury, will recognize five finalists with production grants to showcase their work in an exhibition at Ithra in the spring of 2026. The exhibition will be a new highlight of the prize, returning the award to its home in Eastern Region, contributing to the artists’ evolving legacies, and aiming to amplify discourse on contemporary art in the region. The final winner will be selected during the exhibition.

 Submissions are now officially open and will be accepted until October 16. As part of its evolving approach, both new commissions and recontextualized existing works are eligible to apply.

 The prize recognizes artists whose practices are intellectually engaged, contextually grounded, and developed through sustained inquiry over time. Submitted works must reflect artists' ongoing practice and research.

 The prize is open to individual artists and collectives aged 18 and older, of Arab heritage, or currently residing in Arab countries.