Competition's Official Rules & Terms

THE OPPORTUNITY

Every HBCU student — regardless of whether their institution holds a KEY Art + Design Fair partnership — may enter the KEY Emerging Art Fund Student Art Competition at no cost. Selected works are exhibited at KEY Art + Design Fair by curatorial invitation and judged on site by a panel of industry professionals: curators, collectors, and working artists. Top selections receive scholarship prizes — and every selected artist shows their work on the world’s art stage, during the largest art market week in America.

 

ELIGIBILITY

• Open to students currently enrolled (full- or part-time, undergraduate or graduate) at an accredited Historically Black College or University or have been enrolled in a HBCU in the last 6 months.

• All visual media welcome: painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, sculpture, textile, mixed media, digital art, and design objects.

• Entries must be original works created solely by the entrant. Works created wholly by generative tools without meaningful artistic authorship are not eligible.

• Up to three (3) entries per student. There is no application fee.

 

HOW TO ENTER

• Submit by October 9, 2026 at 11:59 pm EST using the online form at keyartfair.com/students or submit info to: students@keyartfair.com:

  • (1) registration with your student email (or proof of enrollment or graduation date)

  • (2) one image of the completed proposed entry — or a concept description with sketch if the work is in progress;

  • (3) an artist statement about themselves and about the work of up to 250 words;

  • (4) entry dimensions, medium, and year.

• Finished entry works must be exhibition-ready by November 15, 2026: framed or mounted, wired for hanging, maximum 60″ in any dimension and 50 lbs unless approved in advance.

• Selected artists will be notified by October 15, 2026.

 

SELECTION, EXHIBITION + JUDGING

Entries are reviewed by the Fair’s curatorial team; selection for exhibition is by curatorial invitation and all curatorial decisions are final. Selected works hang in the Fair’s student exhibition galleries for all five days. During the Fair, a judging panel of industry professionals evaluate the exhibited works on originality, technical excellence, and voice. Winners are announced at the HBCU Dinner Award program on Saturday, December 5.  All applicants should be available in person or virtually.

 

SCHOLARSHIP PRIZES

• First Prize: $2,500 scholarship

• Second Prize: $1,500 scholarship

• Third Prize: $1,000 scholarship

• Three Honorable Mentions: $500 each

• Prizes are awarded by KEY Emerging Art Fund, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and paid directly to the student or to the school if the student so chooses.

​

PLACING YOUR WORK FOR SALE

Selected artists may — and are encouraged to — place their exhibited work for sale during the Fair. Here is how it works:

• Sale is optional. Indicate on your entry form whether your work is for sale. Works not for sale are exhibited marked “NFS.”

• Minimum price: all works offered for sale carry a minimum of $150. If you name a price at or above the minimum, the Fair’s curatorial team will review it with you against comparable works.

• If you prefer not to set a price, the Fair will price the work for you in consultation with our curatorial team.

• Proceeds: Sale proceeds are paid to the artist.  The art purchaser will be expected to pay shipping & handling fees. Payment within 45 days of the Fair’s close.

• Sold works are released to buyers at the close of the Fair on Sunday; the Fair administers sales, applicable sales tax, and delivery coordination.

 

RULES

• Selected works must remain on view for the full run of the Fair (December 2–6); early removal is not permitted.

• Installation and handling are performed by the Fair’s crew using the Fair’s hanging systems.

• Works must match the submitted image/description; substitutions require prior curatorial approval.

• Content must be suitable for a family-welcoming cultural event; the curatorial team may decline any work at its discretion.

• Unsold and NFS works must be retrieved or shipped within 14 days after the Fair; works unclaimed after 30 days may be deemed abandoned.

• Entrants must be available (in person or virtually) for judging weekend and winner announcements.

 

DISCLAIMERS

Submission of an entry constitutes acceptance of these terms. Selection for exhibition is not guaranteed and all curatorial and judging decisions are final. Entrants retain copyright in their works and grant KEY Art + Design Fair, CADA Art Fair L3C, and KEY Emerging Art Fund, Inc. a non-exclusive license to photograph and reproduce entered works for promotion, press, education, and archives, with artist credit. The Fair provides site security but does not insure entered works; artists are encouraged to carry their own coverage, and works are entered at the artist’s risk except to the extent of the Fair’s negligence. Scholarship awards may be reportable as taxable income; recipients are responsible for their own tax obligations. The Fair may photograph entrants and winners for promotional use. Program details, dates, and prize amounts are subject to change; the version of these terms in effect at the entry deadline governs. This competition is void where prohibited.

​

PUBLICITY, LIKENESS + IMAGE LICENSE

By entering the Competition, each entrant grants KEY Emerging Art Fund, Inc., CADA Art Fair L3C d/b/a KEY Art + Design Fair, and their affiliates, successors, and designees (collectively, the "Fair") a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to photograph, record, reproduce, display, and distribute: (a) images of the entrant's submitted and exhibited artwork, including images provided by the entrant with their entry; and (b) the entrant's name, likeness, photograph, voice, biographical information, school affiliation, and statements, including photography and video captured at the Fair — in each case for the Fair's promotional, marketing, press, educational, fundraising, and archival purposes, in any media now known or later developed, including the Fair's websites, social media channels, email communications, printed materials, and press distributions.

The entrant will be credited by name where reasonably practicable, in the Fair's standard format. The entrant retains all copyright in their artwork; nothing in this section transfers ownership, and the Fair will not sell reproductions of an entrant's work or license an entrant's work or likeness to third parties for those parties' own commercial products without the entrant's separate written consent. Sponsors and media partners of the Fair may republish the Fair's promotional materials that include entrant works and likenesses, with credit, solely in connection with promoting the Fair.

This license is granted without additional compensation, survives the conclusion of the Competition for archival and retrospective purposes, and applies whether or not the entrant is selected or receives a prize. An entrant may request in writing that the Fair discontinue future promotional uses of their likeness following the Fair's conclusion; the Fair will honor reasonable requests, provided that materials already published or distributed need not be recalled. For entrants under 18, this grant must be executed by a parent or legal guardian.

 

KEY DATES

• Entry deadline: Friday, October 9, 2026 at 11:59pm

• Selections announced: October 15, 2026 · Work delivery deadline: November 15, 2026

• Exhibition: December 2–6, 2026 · Winners announced: Saturday, December 5

 

QUESTIONS

students@keyartfair.com

We encourage every HBCU student to apply. Your work belongs on the world’s art stage.