Now Open: 2026 Sobey Art Award call for nominations

Press Release

January 15, 2026

An opportunity to recognize and celebrate the breadth of Canada’s contemporary visual artistic talent.

Starting today, the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) and The Sobey Art Foundation (SAF) invite nominations for the 2026 Sobey Art Award. Nominations will be accepted until Saturday, February 14, 2026, at 8 p.m. EST. The 2026 Sobey Art Award nomination form is accessible online here.

Now in its 25th year and 23rd running, Canada’s most established contemporary visual arts prize will recognize 30 Canadian artists from regions spanning the country, including the Circumpolar, Pacific, Prairies, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic regions.

The Sobey Art Award is among the most generous in the world. The money prizes provide significant support to help artists devote themselves to their practice. This year again, the total prize fund amounts to $465,000.

The Award recognizes artists of all ages at a pivotal moment in their careers. Previous winners and finalists have received notable exposure and achieved critical success nationally and internationally. Tania Willard, the recipient of the 2025 Sobey Art Award from the Pacific region, will be featured in a solo exhibition at the Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver, opening in March 2026. This will be followed by her participation in Rememory, the 25th Biennale of Sydney.

Nomination process
The Sobey Art Award is open to individual artists and collectives. Nominees must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada and have received recognition from peers, critics, and/or curators.

Nominations for the Award are accepted from established artists, arts professionals, scholars, critics, curators and professionals from art galleries and artist-run centres, as well as private Canadian dealers in visual or media arts. Please note that self-nominated applications will not be accepted. The NGC will notify the sender by e-mail upon receipt of a nomination package.

Next steps
The longlist for 2026, featuring five artists from each of the six regions, will be announced in March. Six artists will then be selected from this list to make the shortlist, which will be revealed later this spring. An exhibition featuring a selection of their artworks will take place at the National Gallery of Canada next fall. The winner will be announced at a special celebration at the Gallery in November.

The overall winner receives $100,000, while each of the five remaining shortlisted artists receives $25,000 and each of the remaining longlisted artists receives $10,000.

Don’t miss the 2025 Sobey Art Award Exhibition!
Works by the six artists shortlisted for the 2025 Sobey Art Award are currently on display at the National Gallery of Canada until February 8, 2026.

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For all media requests, please contact:

Josée-Britanie Mallet
Senior Media and Public Relations Officer
National Gallery of Canada
bmallet@gallery.ca

Pénélope Carreau
Public Relations Officer
National Gallery of Canada
pcarreau@gallery.ca

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