2026 AHL-T&W Foundation Contemporary Visual Art Award Application Guidelines
Overview
The AHL Foundation is pleased to announce the open call for the 2026 AHL-T&W Foundation Contemporary Visual Art Award. This award recognizes the work of exemplary emerging contemporary artists of Korean descent in the United States and provides them with a monetary prize as well as the opportunity to have their work presented in a group exhibition in New York in October 2026.
About
Established in 2003, the Contemporary Visual Art Awards is an annual competition open to all contemporary artists of Korean descent active in the United States and is part of AHL Foundation’s core program. The awards recognize the work of exemplary emerging contemporary artists of Korean descent and provide them with a monetary prize and the opportunity to have their work presented at a group exhibition in New York. Since 2016, the award has been generously supported by the T&W Foundation, established by Wonsook Kim and Thomas Park Clement; the T&W Foundation is a private organization that supports charitable, cultural, and educational initiatives, including significant gifts to arts programs and scholarships.
- Application Period: April 1 (Wed), 2026 (Tue) – May 31, 2026(Sun) (11:59pm EDT)
- Notification of Result: July 4, 2026 (Sat)
Eligibility & Requirements
- Must be a visual artist of Korean heritage based in the United States.
- Selected recipients of the Contemporary Visual Art Award or AHL Artist Fellowship within the past three years are not eligible for this year’s award.
- Award recipients must attend the Award Ceremony and Exhibition Opening.
- Award Ceremony: November 7, 2026 (Sat).
Please note the correction regarding the award structure for the 2026 AHL-T&W Foundation Contemporary Visual Art Award:
Three selected artists will each receive $5,000 and participate in the group exhibition in New York City in October 31, 2026 (Sat).
Please note that travel and other costs for the award ceremony and exhibition are included as part of the prize money and will not be reimbursed.
Application Requirements
We recommend having all required materials prepared before starting the online application, as it cannot be saved once in progress. Please prepare the following:
- Artist Statement.
- Work Samples from the past five years (Up to 10 images or 3 video links. If submitting both, please upload up to 5 images and 2 video links.)
Please do not upload video clips of exhibition views. - Full curriculum vitae, including education, exhibitions, professional experience, honors, awards, and publications.
