COMPETITIONS
The International
The International Portrait Competition is open to all artists, members, and non-members.
The 29th Annual International Portrait Competition opens from September 30, 2026 to February 17, 2027. The finalists will be announced March 17, 2027, showcasing the finest in the portraiture and figurative art today. Their selected artwork will be on display at the prestigious The Art of the Portrait conference, May 6-9, 2027, in Washington, DC. for final judging and awards banquet presentation.
2026 Rorick Grand Prize
Rose Frantzen
Last Light, 44x52", oil
Members Only Competition
2025 1st Place - Commissioned Portrait
Joseph Daily
All members of the Portrait Society of America are eligible to enter the 22nd annual Members Only Competition for the chance to see their work featured in the pages of International Artist magazine, The Art of the Portrait Journal, and the Portrait Society of America website and social media pages.
The Members Only Competition, held annually, is open to all Portrait Society members in good standing. Each fall, up to five categories are offered, and members can submit up to one artwork per category. 2026 Categories are Commissioned Portrait, Non-Commissioned Portrait, Outside the Box, Animals as the Subject and Nude Figure.
All work must be your own original design and concept, created independently, completed in the last three years and have never won an award in any previous art competition. All media is accepted in each category including oil, pastel, watercolor, graphite, sculpture, etc. No electronic/computer generated or altered artwork, work done in a class, workshop or under supervision is eligible.
The Future Generation
Winners Announced!
The Portrait Society of America is pleased to announce our seventh annual The Future Generation Competition winners. This competition was created to acknowledge the work of talented, emerging artists, who are 18 to 25 years old.
Early recognition in art competitions can have a great impact on a young artist’s career, as it did for John Singer Sargent, who at the age of twenty-three, won Honorable Mention at the Paris Salon for a portrait he painted of his teacher, Carolus-Duran.
2nd Place - Giuseppe de Palma
Portrait of Laura, 19.7x27.6", oil on linen