Entries to the 2024 Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize have officially closed, and the judging process is now underway. Our sincere thanks to all of the artists and photographers that entered. We are super excited with the array of entries and have already discovered a host of new creators!
We’re thrilled not only by the discovery of new artists but also by the return of those who have participated in previous years. Witnessing the evolution of their work is truly a delight.
DANIJELA KRHA PURSSEY
This year’s entries have showcased a stunning variety of styles and themes—from enchanting fantasy and intriguing contemporary surrealism, to captivating dark art and unconventional figurative portraits. Your creativity continues to impress us! The use of experimental techniques and mixed media highlights your willingness to push boundaries and think outside the box. Each artwork tells a thought-provoking story, adding depth and richness to the experience.
It is also wonderful to see artists who entered in previous years entering again this year. As we have mentioned before, every year is a new Art Prize complete with a new Jury Panel who choose the Winners. We love seeing the evolution of artists’ works year on year!
A truly international Art Prize
Artists from an incredible 96 different countries entered the Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize 2024!
We have received entries from an incredible 96 different countries this year – wow!! Entries have been received from: Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Côte-d’Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Curacao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Isle of Man, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Northern Marianas Islands, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Reunion Island, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Türkiye, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Ukraine, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Việt Nam, Zimbabwe.
Entries were received in various Traditional mediums across the fields of painting, drawing, collage, etching, and mixed media. We have received sculptures in many mediums including metal, glass, paper, wood, textiles, plaster, stone, many resins, ceramics, wool, found objects, and even mushrooms! The Digital Art category has seen an array of digital painters, digital sculptors, digital 3D artists and photomanipulation artists enter, and in-line with our business ethos, AI art was not been eligible to enter. Last but not least, the Photography category provided the opportunity for fine art photographers from around the world to enter both their digital and analogue photography.
Judging Underway
Thanks to this process, our Editor-in-Chief Danijela Krha Purssey and her team have once again discovered a remarkable amount of incredible new talent which will inform the curation of the Beautiful Bizarre Magazine and our international group exhibitions going forward. We look forward to sharing with you more of these wonderful entries over the coming weeks and months! The December issue will also feature a 10 page in-depth interview with the Musonium Grand Prize Award Winner of the 2024 Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize, and another special editorial showcasing the Winners in each Award category. Purchase a print subscription now to make sure you don’t miss out on this and many other inspiring stories.
Judging has now commenced by this year’s Jury Panel. The Jury Panel is made up of: Beautiful Bizarre Co-Founders, Danijela Krha Purssey and Richard Purssey, and the Directors of Modern Eden Gallery, Kim Larson & Bradley Platz; plus representatives from our major partners: Tracey Maigne & Keeley Gerard, Owners and Directors of Musonium Gallery; 33PA‘s CEO, Marketing Director & Curator, Didi Menendez; RAYMAR President & Creative Director, Emilie Dietrich; Yasha Young Projects Founder Yasha Young; and the Owner & Art Director of BearWolf Books, Catherine K. Gyllerstrom.
These are joined by esteemed contemporary artists: Michael Parkes (Traditional Art juror), Kirsty Mitchell (Photography juror), Erika Sanada (Sculpture juror) and Karla Ortiz (Digital Art juror) who will be reviewing work in their respective areas of expertise.
As you can imagine, this is NOT an easy job with so many exceptional entries in all categories! Stay tuned for the big reveal soon.
2024 Award Categories
- Musonium Grand Prize Award
- RAYMAR Traditional Art Award
- Yasha Young Projects Sculpture Award
- Photography Award
- Digital Art Award
- 33PA Emerging Artist Award
- Catherine K. Gyllerstrom People’s Choice Award [public voting on the Finalists opens 23 August 2024]
Timeframes & Deadlines
9 – 12 August 2024: Judging
13 August onward: Shortlist of 140 Finalists [25 per Award category: Digital Art, Photography, Sculpture; 50 from the Traditional Art Award category; and 15 from the Emerging Art Award category] announced
23 August 2024 [AEDT, Australian Eastern Daylight Time]: People’s Choice voting opens
6 September 2024 [AEDT, Australian Eastern Daylight Time]: People’s Choice voting closes
Week of the 13th of September: Winners announced
13 September 2024: 33PA Emerging Artist Award winners announced
16 September 2024: Yasha Young Projects Sculpture Award winners announced
17 September 2024: Photography Award winners announced
18 September 2024: Digital Art Award winners announced
19 September 2024: RAYMAR Traditional Art Award winners announced
20 September 2024: Musonium Grand Prize Award, Honourable Mentions & Catherine K. Gyllerstrom People’s Choice Award announced
9 November 2024: Beautiful Bizarre curated exhibition ‘Paracosmic Escape’ opens at Modern Eden Gallery in San Francisco, USA. (Note: Winners of the Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize will be invited to exhibit a work in the ‘Paracosmic Escape’ [Curated by: Beautiful Bizarre Magazine | Art Direction/Theme Conceptualization: Musonium Gallery] exhibition in November 2024 at Modern Eden Gallery. Winners may exhibit their prize winning entry if it was created within 12 months of the entry date, and not hung in any other exhibition or prize previously. Work already exhibited or hung in a Prize will not be accepted to the ‘Paracosmic Escape’ exhibition. If the prize winning work is not eligible to be exhibited in the exhibition, or if the artist chooses, they may create a new work for the exhibition.)
Until then, enjoy some of the wonderful entries below in the following Award categories: Photography Award, Digital Art Award, and 33PA Emerging Artist Award. We will be publishing more the RAYMAR Traditional Art Award and the Yasha Young Projects Sculpture Award entries tomorrow – stay tuned.
