Since 2002, the Kennedy Center and Volkswagen Group of America have teamed up for the VSA Emerging Young Artists Program, a Jean Kennedy Smith Arts and Disability Program, to recognize and showcase the work of emerging young artists with disabilities, ages 16-25, who are residing in the United States. Fifteen winning artists share a total of $60,000 in awards. Grand Prize is $20,000, First Prize is $10,000, Second Prize is $6,000, and the remaining Awards of Excellence are $2,000 each. Winners exhibit their selected artwork in a year-long nationally touring exhibition, and attend an all-expenses-paid professional development workshop in Washington, DC.
2017-2018 VSA Emerging Young Artists Program
Art should excite our senses, awaken our curiosity, and electrify our very being. It has the ability to invigorate and empower the artist and viewer alike, but just as important, art can spark empathy and ignite understanding.
This year’s VSA Emerging Young Artists Program’s theme is Electrify!, and we’re seeking artwork that is charged with ideas, that acts as a conduit for creative reflection on the past, explores the “now,” and invokes a future full of possibility and inclusivity.
Deadline Extended to May 10, 2017