TARTGET PAINTING PRIZE 2026 offers over €90,000 (over $100,000) in total awards, positioning it among the most significant international painting competitions worldwide. Prizes include major cash awards up to €12,000 (Best in Show), technical awards for Drawing and Watercolour (€4,000 each), and multiple acquisition prizes. Selected artists will exhibit at the Ateneo de Madrid, one of Europe’s most prestigious cultural institutions, located next to the Prado Museum in the UNESCO-listed Landscape of Light.

Additional opportunities include four 12-day artist residencies in Spain, professional training at Atelier Madrid, extensive international promotion, publication features, and high-value fine art materials from leading global brands.

The competition is open to artists worldwide and welcomes figurative, contemporary, abstract and conceptual painting, as well as traditional media such as oil, watercolour and drawing. All works are evaluated by an elite international jury of renowned artists, curators and art professionals.

A unique early entry advantage grants 75 direct finalist places to artworks submitted before 15 February 2026, offering artists enhanced visibility and a strategic pathway to the final exhibition and awards ceremony in Madrid.
 

Eligibility: The competition is open to painters from every corner of the globe. See rules for details.

Entry Fee: The registration fees are as follows: 

a) Cost for the first work: €50
b) Cost for the second work: €35
c) Entry of the same work in one or more categories: €35 per additional category
d) In the Young Artist category, the cost for the first work is €35, and €20 for subsequent works within the same category