Youth Creative Competition

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The Youth Creative Competition is back in 2026! Open for artists and writers aged 12-24 years old, this competition is sure to showcase the incredible young talent we have in Ryde and share the enormous benefits that art, and the message behind it, can provide us. Entrants will be asked to respond to the theme of the competition and prepare work that best represents this theme. There is a total prize pool $6000 across all categories.

Theme for 2026: YOUR DREAM

Only one entry per person may be submitted across all categories

Art Category | Painting, Drawing, Photography, Sculpture, Digital Artwork, Collage and Short Film.

Writing Category | Short Story, Fan Fiction, Poetry, Review or Piece of prose.

Key Competition Dates
Entries open Friday 23 January 2026
Entries close Sunday 29 March 2026
Judging period 1 – 14 April
Award ceremony Wednesday 29 April
(RSVP and more details TBA)

Terms and Conditions

  1. The Promoter is the City of Ryde of 3 Richardson Place, North Ryde NSW 2113, ABN number 81 621 292 610.
  2. The City of Ryde “2026 Youth Creative Competition” commences at 10:00am Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) on Friday 23 January 2026 and ends at 11:59pm AEDT on Sunday 29 March 2026.
  3. Entry into the promotion is open to those who live, work or study in Ryde, aged 12-24 years.
  4. To enter the competition entrants must submit a digital copy of their artwork (high resolution, no less than 2.5 mb) or written entry (pdf or word version only), which responds to the theme YOUR DREAM, via the City of Ryde webpage (https://www.ryde.nsw.gov.au/creativecomp).
  5. Artwork and writing entries must be suitable for public viewing. Council reserves the right to deny any work that is deemed inappropriate, unsuitable, or offensive.
  6. Participation in the competition by completing the above step is deemed acceptance of these terms and conditions.
  7. Only one entry per person may be submitted across all categories.
  8. Families of City of Ryde staff members and Councillors and any promotional partners cannot enter the competition.
  9. By entering this competition, the Participant gives consent to City of Ryde to publish their entry via Council’s communication channels. Please note that no identifying details will be uploaded; only the youth’s first name and age will be displayed. Should artwork or written entries be displayed or advertised, Council will acknowledge and reference who the artist is.
  10. There are two categories: Art and Writing. Each category has three (3) age group categories, 12-15, 16-19, 20-24 years. For the art category: winners from each age group will receive a $500 gift voucher from Art Scene (West Ryde). The runner up from each age group will receive a $350 gift voucher from Art Scene (West Ryde). Highly Commended from each age group will receive a $150 gift voucher from Art Scene (West Ryde). For the writing category; winners from each age group will receive a $500 gift voucher from Harry Harthog Bookshop. The runner up from each age group will receive a $350 gift voucher from Harry Harthog Bookshop. Highly Commended from each age group will receive a $150 gift voucher from Harry Harthog Bookshop. Total prize pool is $6,000.
  11. Entries will be judged by external judges with a creative background for their creativity and uniqueness. All entries will be considered with equal weighting.
  12. This competition is a game of skill, and chance will not determine the prize winner. All valid entries received during the competition period will be judged on their merit and the entry deemed the best received during the judging period will win the prize.
  13. The Winner will be announced at an awards ceremony in April 2026.
  14. If the Promoter is unable to contact the winner within 48 hours, the winner will forfeit their prize, which will be offered to the next best entry.
  15. The Prize, or any unused portion of the Prize, is not transferable or exchangeable and cannot be redeemed as cash. The Prize is not valid in conjunction with any other offer.
  16. The Prize is subject to any conditions imposed by the Promoter.
  17. The Promoter recognises that this promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook.
  18. By entering the competition, the winner consents to their name being published as winner of the competition and to participate in any publicity accompanying or resulting from this promotion in printed and/or online formats.
  19. All decisions made by the judging panel are final and no correspondence will be entered into.
  20. City of Ryde will not be responsible for any entries that are not received for any reason, by the closing date and time, whether lost, delayed, corrupted or otherwise, and whether or not due to any technical difficulties or malfunctions. 
  21. The Promoter reserves the right to refuse to award any of the Prizes to anyone in breach of these terms and conditions.

Definitions

“Participant” means any person who enters the “2026 Youth Creative Competition” Competition
“Promoter” means the City of Ryde of Level 1, Building 0, Riverview Business Park, 3 Richardson Place, North Ryde NSW 2113.

 

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