V&A Illustration Awards 2026: Last Call for Entries

This is about the Call for Entries for the biennial V&A Illustration Awards - in 2026. Below are the basic facts of what you need to know - plus the link to where you can read more. Deadline for entry is 12.00 GMT on 5 January 2026.

The V&A Illustration Awards is a free, biennial competition celebrating excellence in illustration and contemporary practice, and judged by a panel of prominent illustrators and industry experts.

The Awards aim to reflect the contemporary UK illustration scene, welcoming published work by UK residents or those resident anywhere in the world working for UK clients. 

Illustration: Moira Gemmill Illustrator of the Year 2024 Benjamin Phillips, 

Alte Zachen / Old Things by Ziggy Hanaor (© Cicada Books, B. Phillips 2022)

 

The Prizes

The prize money has increased for 2026, 

• each of the five category winners will receive £3,500 
• five runners-up will get £1000. 
• The overall winner, the Moira Gemmill Illustrator of the Year, receives 
• an additional £5,500 (making a total of £9,000) and 
• their work will become part of the V&A’s collections. 

Winners and runners-up for each category will be announced in summer 2026. Their work will be displayed in a dedicated, curated display within the V&A.

The Awards are generously supported by the Linder Foundation and the Moira Gemmell Memorial fund.

What you need to know

What are the categories for entries?

In 2026, there are five categories. There are no "designated briefs" for entries in any category.

The five categories are:

Keith Haring vs Mr Doodle

 I watched a news item on BBC Breakfast TV this morning about a chap called "Mr Doodle" (his real name is actually Sam Cox). 

The BBC was treating him as if he'd invented a completely new way of creating art - which is what prompted this post.

In fact, it looked very much to me as if he's trying to emulate the style of Keith Haring (1958-1990) - minus the homoerotic / sexual aspects of the latter's work. Mr Doodle's artwork seems to focus more on what look like kiddy cartoon characters - BUT the style of drawing is very, very similar. (I do wonder at times what the BBC losing competent arts journalists is doing to its coverage of art).

Keith Haring Foundation website

Haring was very much a pop culture artist of the 1980s. I well remember reading about him at the time and being completely amazed by nature and scale of his artworks.

He became an established artist by 1983 but preferred to keep his prices low so that his art was more accessible.

Haring created the Pop Shop in 1986 in the SoHo district of Manhattan, selling T-shirts, toys, posters, and other objects that show his works—allowing his works to be accessible to a larger number of people. Speaking about the Pop Shop in 1989, Haring said: "For the past five or six years, the rewards I've gotten are very disproportionate to what I deserve...I make a lot more money than what I should make, so it's a little bit of guilt, of wanting to give it back." Wikipedia

His artwork is now administered by the Keith Haring Foundation and sold via the Gladstone Gallery in New York 

Haring's VERY distinctive signature style has been much copied over the years by:

• his fans wishing to produce accolades to his art
• those wishing to make lots of money from his style - in part because Haring's style is so  very marketable. 

The reason Mr Doodle got a significant spot on the BBC is because he's doodled his house in Tenterden in Kent - absolutely everywhere. Apparently the neighbours don't mind. I'm wondering if they might should opening the house to the public is the next step!

See the video from his Twitter account below

Artists and Illustrators at the Mall Galleries

The Artists and Illustrators "Artist of the Year" Exhibition is on view at the Threadneedle Space in the Mall Galleries until Saturday 24th February (1pm)

You can see the 50 artworks shortlisted for the Readers Choice Award on the competition website.

The winner of the Readers Choice Award - and other awards - is being announced at a special prizegiving event this evening (Tuesday 20 February) at the Mall Galleries.

I saw the exhibition yesterday when I visited the Pastel Society's annual show.  Interestingly people were confused as to which exhibition they were in - and were wondering if the A&I Exhibition was the Pastel Society. This is maybe unsurprising given that last year the Pastel Society also had the Threadneedle Space for their exhibition.

Maybe scope to improve the signposting of the different exhibitions on entrance to the gallery - and individual galleries?

However I have to say I found one very marked difference between the artwork on show compared to that in the Pastel Society exhibition elsewhere in the Mall Galleries.

I walked around slowly once - took some photos and then looked again.

Something was niggling. I always like to work out what a niggle is all about.

I could see that some of the draughtsmanship was good - a bit too good if anything.

I suddenly realised that most of not all of the artwork on display failed to show optical mixing of colours on the support.

• Most of the paint seemed to be being applied as a single layer
• I didn't see transparent glazing in the watercolours. 
• I saw very little paint mixing on the support by those using oils and acrylics. 

This approach to painting creates images which I find curiously flat.  To me it's a technique of painting that is also also very characteristic of an amateur painter.  That's because, unless used by expert hands, it can veer towards giving an impression of 'painting by numbers/fill in the contours" effect.

The painting that I liked best was by Caroline Pool.

Here I am: Sally by Caroline Pool

I recognised the name straight away. She had two works in the very recent Threadneedle Exhibition 2018 and curiously this work is hung about a couple of feet to the left of where one of her paintings hung in the Threadneedle Space last week!

This painting works hard at shapes and form and the differences in textures within the painting.  The cutout effect also demanded that my eye take a close look!  The palette of colours used was also almost triadic - which again made for a pleasing picture.

It's certainly a work by a professional painter and I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised if she wins an award tonight.  There again it won't appeal to everyone.....

You can see the prizewinners on https://www.facebook.com/ArtistsAndIllustrators/

Artists and Illustrators - Artist of the Year 2015

The exhibition of artwork by the 50 artists shortlisted for the Artist of the Year 2015 Prize sponsored by Artists and Illustrators Magazine opened yesterday at the Mall Galleries and is on display until the end of Saturday 27th February.

The "Artist of the Year 2015" gets £1,000 in cash and gallery representation at Panter & Hall. You can see the rest of the prizes on offer on the competition web page.

I would have told you that you can vote for the winner - but the prizewinners are being announced tonight!

The artwork is impressive and colourful. The exhibition is definitely well worth a visit - especially if you are an aspiring artist wanting to try your luck in this competition in 2016.

View of the Artist of the Year exhibition at the Mall Galleries

Selected Artists

• Jane Austin - Smell the Roses
• Rebecca Barnard  - Reflection IV
• Karen Beauchamp  - The Colours of Kintyre
• Angela Bell - The Bar Flies
• Graham Berry - Doing the Rounds
• Elin Sian Blake - Huna Blentyn
• Hannah Bruce - Flowers in Atmospheric Blue and Orange
• Monique Castellani-Kraan -  Knobbed Hornbill
• Emma Colbert  - The Family Tree
• Penny Crichton-Seager -  Mourning
• Lizet Dingemans -  Hare
• Rosemary Farrer - Washing in the Kitchen Garden
• Libby Fellingham  - Beatrice
• Nigel Fletcher -  La Vielle Maison
• Mari French - Flight
• Genevieve French - Rosalie on Blue
• Penny German - Turnips
• Rusudana Glonti - Touch of the East. Awarded The Grand Prize in the Still Life Competition by "International Artist" magazine in August 2015
• Charlie  Goff-Deakins -  Glimpse
• Peter Goodhall - Koi Anticipation V
• Frank Gould  Tawny
• Elizabeth Harding-Huber -  French Damsons
• Ian Hargreaves -  High Rise
• Vic Harris - Duncan 
• Mark Harrison - Drive Thru 
• John Hurford - Blue Tits
• David Janes - Turbot
• David Johnson - Symphony in the Canopy
• Stephen Jones  - Echoes
• Steven Keating - Swans
• Mark Lodge - Bernese Oberland Panorama
• Melissa Launay - Marmalade on toast and an orange

• Este MacLeod - Summer's Eve
• Tai Meng Lim  - Daydreaming
• Srirangam Mohankumar - Italian Street Café
• Aoife Murphy  - Wine Glass Stem
• Ginny Page - The Chain
• Kerri Pratt - Enlighten
• Laura Quinn - Dylan
• Deborah  Richards - Veiled Moon Outside St Mary's Church
• Lesley Robertshaw  - Market
• Marie Robinson - Slow boat to China
• Leanne Rutter - Ndege, Tanzania
• Joe Simpson - Matt Lucas Singing in the Rain
• LouiseStebbing - Arum Lillies
• Natalie Toplass -  Blue Hydrangea
• Michaela Walker - Looking Up
• Lu Willis - The next train on platform 4

While virtually every artist has a website it was interesting to note that not every artist thinks it worth creating an "about the artist" page on their website.