FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
FAQS
The ins & outs of the Engage Art Contest
- Submit original Scripture-inspired artwork to the 2026 Engage Art Contest.
- A slate of winners, selected by a jury, will be featured as a curated Bible Plan on YouVersion, a billion-user Scripture platform.
- Submissions will be accepted January 1–31, 2026.
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Original art in conversation with Scripture
As Emily Dickinson famously wrote, "Tell all the truth but tell it slant." We are looking for unique, fresh Scripture engagement across diverse media, themes and perspectives. With your artwork, artists will share a short written meditation on their Scripture and how their art engages it.
Submission Form Preview
Submit at engageart.org/submissions-2026
Contest Information and FAQs
The Engage Art Contest is refreshed and ready for 2026!
The arts have the power to reveal truth, stir hearts, and point us toward what matters most.
"Tell all the truth but tell it slant," as Emily Dickinson famously wrote; "The Truth must dazzle gradually, or every man be blind." This is the power of the arts.
We invite artists to share original artwork:
• Any visual or video genre (painting, sculpture, music video, original dance, short film...);
• From your unique perspective, anywhere in the world;
• Inspired by any passage in the Christian Scriptures.
We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Artists from all backgrounds have taken inspiration from Christian Scriptures for millennia. This contest is open to anyone interested in using the arts to engage Scripture, and Scripture to engage their art.
Everyone—amateur to professional, from all backgrounds and perspectives—may submit original work.
Caveat: For legal reasons entrants must be 18 or older. Anyone younger than 18 may only participate as part of a team.
- Minors must upload permission from a parent or guardian.
- A team member who is 18 or older must act as the lead Entrant.
Your artwork can help people around the world see Scripture in new ways and explore what they believe.
There are significant exposure opportunities for all contestants. All exposure opportunities are free.
- Winners will be curated and featured in a Bible Plan on YouVersion, a billion-user Scripture engagement platform.
- Artists whose work follow the rules of the contest will earn a dedicated Artist Page and a unique Gallery Artwork page. You can include your own links or details for sales and commissions on these pages.
- Submissions may be showcased on our website, social media and emails.
- We invite other organizations, ministries, churches, art-lovers around the world to contemplate your work. These groups and individuals may want the artist to create more work for them.
While all points of view are welcome, all artwork must be respectful of the Christian Scriptures and the religious beliefs of others.
Each Entrant can enter one visual artwork and/or one video artwork.
All entries must be family friendly.
Artists from all backgrounds are welcome.
You must include the following:
- Confirmation of eligibility, including your age
- Artist bio
- Artwork title, medium, genre, dimensions (for visual) and/or transcript (for video)
- Artist Statement
- Explanation of how artwork illuminates the the Scripture of your choice
A panel of jurors will thoughtfully review all submissions and select a shortlist of winners.
Jurors will consider:
- Artistic excellence
- Depth of Scripture engagement
- A collection that flows well together, with both diversity and cohesiveness
Read more at engageartorg/jury
The 2026 Engage Art Contest has two categories:
• Visual includes all artwork genres such as painting, sculpture, photography, pastels, digital art.
• Video includes music videos, short films, animation, performing arts, spoken word, original dance—any work best presented in a video format. Videos are limited to 3:00 minutes maximum.
Entrants may submit one artwork
VISUAL ART
Visual art–Please submit a single artwork or single cohesive artwork series. You may upload up to 5 images of your single artwork. We allow multiple images so artists can show, for example, various perspectives for a 3D sculpture. It is not necessary to use all 5 images if you don't need them.
VISUAL ART file limits: 400 mb file size limit
VIDEO ARTS
- All videos are 5 minutes, max. 5:00 or shorter. Submitting a clip of a longer artwork is acceptable.
- You should include a thumbnail photo to represent your video in the online Gallery.
- Include Instrumentation and Lyrics/Transcript for Music Videos, Film and Performing Arts Videos.
- Include credits for any team members.
- In addition to the video file, please include an online link to your video such as a YouTube or Vimeo link.
IMPORTANT FOR VIDEO: Do not include any spaces in the name of your video file, as they will not play in our gallery, and you will have to redo your submission.
Please use the naming convention:
[MyLastName]_[MyVideoName]_[Category].[fileformat]
For example:
Sullivan_GreatestFlaw_Film.mp4
OGrady_PerfectStorm_VisualArts.jpg
Not really. Unfortunately it is not possible to edit a submission after you submit it. If you urgently wish to make changes, please contact us and we will decline your submission and allow you to resubmit.
Submissions may not be withdrawn past the January 31 deadline.
While we try to be prompt, we are a small team. Please allow several days for a reply during peak times. Thank you for your patience.
Video entries may be in any language, but all entries must include a full English translation, and all written statements must be in English. All videos must also include subtitles.
We do not want to be responsible for mistranslating your submission. If your written statements are not in English and you do not include video translations and subtitles as needed, we may decline your submission and request you resubmit with translation.
No. That is copyright infringement. You may only submit your own original artwork.
If you bring in an element—such as background music or stock footage—you must have written legal permission. You are solely responsible for any copyright infringement.
Engage Art reserves the right to request proof that your entry is your original artwork created solely by you. If you use elements that are not your original work without written permission from the copyright holder, we reserve the right to decline your submission. Plagiarism is not permitted and will result in immediately declining your submission.
You, the artist, will retain all copyright to your artwork without exception. You also grant Engage Art the non-exclusive permissions detailed here and in the agreement.
By entering this art competition, you grant Engage Art and its assignees a non-exclusive (you can use the artwork elsewhere) perpetual (ongoing) license to reproduce your artwork in a variety of formats for a variety of purposes. This includes on our website and in publications, and sharing with nonprofit groups and organizations, featuring at events, and sharing publicly. Artworks may be included in materials that are given away, and your artwork may be combined with other art, with design, and with text.
This license to display your artwork remains with Engage Art.
Artworks will not be used for any other purposes than those stated here without your express permission. If your artwork is used in any of these ways, Engage Art will use its best efforts to credit or attribute your artwork to you.
Engage Art and others may not sell your art in any form. If any entity, including Engage Art or its assigns, wants to create a product for sale that includes your art, they will contact you first and together you can determine an appropriate payment for their use of your work.
If you wish, you may include information about our art practice to connect with an audience. You may include, if you like:
- Company/Organization
- Website
- Bios of each team member
- Purchase information for entry or a copy of it
- Other goods or services for sale
- Contact information to get more information or purchase
You may enter one Visual and/or one Video artwork submission.
The notice you receive should tell you why your artwork was rejected. You can go back into your Artist Page and submit again, fixing any problems explained in the notice. You will be able to see and copy/paste from your original submission.
The most common reason a submission is rejected is because the artist did not provide enough reflection on how their artwork explores the Scriptures.
Our official terms and conditions page includes three documents you can review and download:
- the official agreement to submit work
- a “Simplified” version of the agreement that explains some of the legal language
- a release form for team members age 17 or younger
