SALA Awards & Opportunities
Find current and upcoming awards and opportunities here. Some are open to South Australian artists, and some are exclusive to artists & venues that are registered for the 2026 SALA Festival.
Check out the finalists and winners for the 2025 SALA Awards on our Finalists & Winners page, or check out our archive of winners from past years.
Country Arts SA
Breaking Ground Award
The Country Arts SA Breaking Ground award sets out to elevate and accelerate the careers of South Australian regional visual artists by providing the support to push the boundaries of their practice into new and uncharted territory.
Prize: $10,000 to develop a body of work for solo exhibition at Murray Bridge Regional Gallery during the 2027 SALA Festival + $5,000 mentorship opportunity & more!
Applications open: 16 March – midnight 13 May 2026 via the Country Arts SA website.
Eligible applicants:
- MUST be a resident of regional South Australia as currently defined under the South Australian Country Arts Trust Act (1992) (see Country Arts SA website to check your regional status)
- Can be at any stage of their career
- Can be working in any medium
Country Arts SA assesses regionality as instructed on a federal level.
You can check whether you are considered regional by using the Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) tool found here.
Select the ‘Modified Monash Model 2019’ tick box and search your address in the dropdown bar. Any residential address outside of ‘MM1: Metropolitan area’ is considered regional and is therefore eligible for the Breaking Ground award.
Head to the Country Arts SA website for more information about the Breaking Ground Award. There is a PDF information pack (which includes the Terms & Conditions), extensive FAQs, information on past recipients, and more. Applications are via the Country Arts SA website.
Centennial Park Sculpture Exhibition
South Australian artists & makers who create outdoor sculpture are invited to submit artwork for consideration in the SALA in the Park exhibition in the beautiful grounds of Centennial Park during SALA Festival 2026.
EXCLUSIVE AWARDS & OPPORTUNITIES
The following awards & opportunities are open exclusively to artists and venues who are taking part in a registered exhibition or event in SALA Festival 2026.
City of Adelaide Award
The City of Adelaide Award recognises an artist whose work connects to Adelaide. This award is open to artists working in any medium, who are taking part in a SALA exhibition within the City of Adelaide (including North Adelaide).
Prize: $5,000 + winner required to participate in one public program (artist talk, in-conversation, etc) with the City of Adelaide in August 2027, sharing with the community their creative practice and how it has evolved as a result of the award.
Artists who are taking part in SALA 2026 with an event taking place in the City of Adelaide (including North Adelaide) may apply for this award.
An artwork’s connection to Adelaide may be obvious or subtle, intentional or retrospective.
It could be through the exploration of city culture, diverse community, people, creativity, landmarks, history, place, flora, or fauna; or reflect Adelaide’s identity as a centre for playful, thought-provoking, and world-class art experiences.
Artists can apply for this award via the SALA Online Portal between 1 March and 13 May 2026 (inclusive). It is free and easy to create an account.
You will receive a confirmation email after you submit your award application. If you do not receive one, please get in touch with SALA Festival to ensure that your award application submitted correctly.
The application form will require:
- The registration ID number for the exhibition/event that your submitted artwork will be featured in (eg: R12345)
- 1-4 images of your artwork (max size 10MB)
+ optional link to your artwork if it’s in a digital or moving image format. - CV (max size 10MB)
- Brief statement that explains your work’s connection to the City (max 100 words).
- Brief statement proposing how you intend to use the award to develop, extend and amplify your practice (max 100words).
1 March / Award opens for applications
Wed 6 May / Festival registrations close
Wed 13 May / Award applications close (11:59pm)
Late July / finalists announced
August / judging occurs during the Festival
September / winner announced
August 2027 / winner gives artist talk
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
Judging: Finalists will be determined by a panel of judges based on the award nomination forms submitted and announced in July 2026. The winner will be determined during the Festival and announced at the conclusion of SALA 2026.
The Advertiser
Contemporary Art Award
For the most outstanding contemporary work in any medium in 2026.
Finalists will be selected to exhibit their submitted artwork in the foyer at Keith Murdoch House (Adelaide) from July- end of August as part of the SALA Festival.
Prize: $5,000
Artists who are registered in the 2026 SALA Festival may apply for this award.
The artwork must:
- have been created/completed since May 2025
- not have been submitted to the 2025 SALA Awards
- not exceed 1.8m in any direction.
- be available for display in Adelaide as part of a finalist exhibition from July-August
Artists can apply for this award via the SALA Online Portal between 1 March and 13 May 2026 (inclusive). It is free and easy to create an account.
Once logged in, navigate to ‘Awards’ in the left hand menu. Click on the name of the award you wish to apply for, and it will open an award application form. Draft award applications will appear beneath the list of awards. Click the ‘edit draft’ button next to a draft to continue working on it (and go on to submit it).
The application form will ask for
- Artist (nominee) details
- Registration ID number of a 2026 SALA exhibition that the artist is participating in (eg R12345).
- Contact details
- Artist website or Instagram account (optional)
- A statement about the artwork (max 100 words)
- Image of the artwork (1-2 images, max 10mb each)
- Artwork title
- Medium
- Year
- Dimensions
1 March / Award opens for applications.
6 May / Festival registrations close.
13 May / Award applications close (11:59pm).
May-June / Judges determine finalists.
June-July / finalists contacted to organise finalist exhibition.
July / finalists announced.
July / finalist exhibition is installed and opens.
August / winner judging occurs during the Festival.
September / winner announced.
September / finalist exhibition is deinstalled.
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
Judging: Finalists will be determined prior to the Festival by panel of judges based on the award nomination forms.
The finalists will be contacted in May/June to begin organising the finalist exhibition.
Judging of the award winner will take place during the 2026 SALA Festival. The winner will be announced at the conclusion of the Festival.
Please note, finalist artwork will be displayed in the foyer of Keith Murdoch House. If you’d like to see the space finalists work the selected finalists work will be displayed, you can visit the past years exhibition photo gallery.
City Rural Emerging Artist Award
For artists in the early stages of their career with under five years’ professional experience.
Prize: $2,500
Artists who are registered in the 2026 SALA Festival with under 5 years’ professional experience (as an artist) may apply for this award at no cost.
Artworks submitted must:
- have been created/completed since May 2025, and not submitted to the 2025 SALA Awards.
- be destined for the exhibition/event named in the application form.
Artists can apply for this award via the SALA Online Portal between 1 March and 13 May 2026 (inclusive). It is free and easy to create an account.
Once logged in, navigate to ‘Awards’ in the left hand menu. Click on the name of the award you wish to apply for, and it will open an award application form. Draft award applications will appear beneath the list of awards. Click the ‘edit draft’ button next to a draft to continue working on it (and go on to submit it).
You will receive a confirmation email after you submit your award application. If you do not receive one, please get in touch with SALA Festival to ensure that your award application submitted correctly.
The Award application form will ask for:
- The registration ID number for the exhibition/event that your submitted artwork will be featured in (eg: R12345)
- 1-2 images of the artwork being submitted. These can be alternative views of one artwork (eg, full length + closeup), or 2 separate works (the first work that you upload in the form will be the ‘primary work’ for judging purposes).
- A statement about your work and background as an artist. (max 100 words)
- Briefly explain your goals/next steps in your art practice. (max 100 words)
- Artist biography (max 100 words)
1 March / This Award opens for applications
6 May / Festival registrations close
13 May / Award applications close (midnight)
Late July / finalists announced
August / judging occurs during the Festival
September / winner announced
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
Judging: Finalists will be determined from the nomination forms and announced in July. Judging of finalist artworks will take place during the 2026 SALA Festival and the winner will be announced at the conclusion of the Festival.
Inspiring SA Science in Art Award
For artists whose work explores/engages with science, technology, engineering, maths or medicine (STEMM), or STEMM-related issues.
Prize: $2,500
Artists who are registered in the 2026 SALA Festival are encourage to apply for this award.
Artists can apply for this award via the SALA Online Portal from 1 March to 13 May 2026 (inclusive). It is free and easy to create an account.
Once you are logged in, click on ‘Awards’ in the left hand menu. Then click on the text ‘Inspiring SA Science in Art Award’ to create a new application form. Draft award applications will appear beneath the list of awards. Click the ‘edit draft’ button next to a draft to continue working on it (and go on to submit it).
Ensure that you ‘submit’ this form before the deadline. If you do not receive a confirmation email after submission, please contact SALA Festival (phone: 7077 0011 / email: [email protected])
The application form will ask you to upload:
- Registration ID number for the exhibition/event where the submitted artwork will be displayed. (eg. R12345)
- 1-2 images of a single artwork
- a statement about your specific artwork (maximum 100 words)
- artist biography / general statement about your practice (maximum 100 words)
You can download a preview of the form [PDF] for more information about what is required.
1 March / This Award opens for applications
6 May / Festival registrations close
13 May / Award applications close (midnight)
Late July / finalists announced
August / judging occurs during the Festival
September / winner announced
Cost: There is no fee to apply for this award.
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
Judging: Finalists will be chosen based on the images uploaded and will be announced in July. Judging of the award will take place during the SALA Festival and the winner will be announced at the conclusion of the Festival.
City of Unley Active Ageing award
For artists over the age of 60 to celebrate the City of Unley’s involvement with SALA and its commitment to promoting and supporting an active ageing approach. Both traditional and contemporary artworks are encouraged.
Prize: $2,000 and an exhibition space in Unley for SALA 2027.
Artists who are registered in the 2026 SALA Festival and are aged 60 years or over on at the close of submissions for this award may apply for this award at no cost.
By applying for this award, the artist agrees that if they are chosen as the winner, they will exhibit at a provided space in Unley for SALA Festival 2027.
The artwork submitted must:
- have been created/completed since May 2025
- not have been submitted to the 2025 SALA Awards
- be destined for display at the SALA exhibition/event noted in the application form.
Artists can apply for this award via the SALA Online Portal from 1 March to 13 May 2026 (inclusive). It is free and easy to create an account if you do not already have one.
Once you are logged in, click on ‘Awards’ in the left menu. Then click on ‘City of Unley Active Ageing Award’ and a new award application form will open.
Draft award applications will appear beneath the list of awards. Click the ‘edit draft’ button next to a draft to continue working on it (and go on to submit it).
Ensure that you ‘submit’ this form before the deadline. If you do not receive a confirmation email after submission, please contact SALA Festival (phone: 7077 0011 / email: [email protected])
The form will ask for:
- the Registration ID number of the SALA exhibition/event that this artwork will be displayed at. (eg. R12345)
- 1-2 images of a single artwork
- a statement about your work (maximum 100 words)
1 March / Award opens for applications
Wed 6 May / Festival registrations close
Wed 13 May / Award applications close 11:59pm
Late July / finalists announced
August / judging occurs during the Festival
September / winner announced
Note: this award carries an expectation that the winner will exhibit at Hughes Gallery in SALA 2027.
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
Judging: Finalists will be chosen based on the images uploaded and will be announced in July. Judging of the award will take place during the SALA Festival and the winner will be announced at the conclusion of the Festival.
Don Dunstan Foundation Award
For artists whose work honours the legacy of Don Dunstan and/or engages with the values of the Don Dunstan Foundation.
The objectives and priorities of the Don Dunstan Foundation include homelessness; climate justice, Aboriginal empowerment and reconciliation; democracy; and Don Dunstan’s legacy.
Prize: $2,000
Artists who are registered in the 2026 SALA Festival may apply for this award at no cost.
The artwork submitted must:
- have been completed since May 2025
- not have been submitted to the 2025 SALA awards
- be displayed at the SALA exhibition/event noted in the form
Artists can apply for this award via the SALA Online Portal from 1 March to 13 May 2026 (inclusive). It is free and easy to create an account if you do not already have one.
Once logged in, click on ‘Awards’ in the left menu. Then click on ‘Don Dunstan Foundation Award’ to open a new application form.
Draft award applications will appear beneath the list of awards. Click the ‘edit draft’ button next to a draft to continue working on it (and go on to submit it).
Ensure that you ‘submit’ this form before the deadline. If you do not receive a confirmation email after submission, please contact SALA Festival (phone: 7077 0011 / email: [email protected])
The application form will ask for:
- The Registration ID number of the SALA exhibition/event where the artwork will be displayed (eg R12345).
- at least 1 image of one of your artworks, with the option to provide a second image of the same artwork (perhaps a closeup or alternative view)
- a brief artist biography (max 100 words)
- a statement explaining how your work relates to the themes of the Don Dunstan Foundation (max 100 words)
1 March / award applications open
6 May / SALA registrations close
Wednesday 13 May / award applications close 11:59pm
Late July / finalists announced
August / judges visit finalist exhibitions
September / winner announced
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
SALA in Lights Award
The SALA in Lights Award aims to illuminate the work of a South Australian visual artist taking part in the 2026 SALA Festival.
Prize: The winner’s artwork will be the subject of an after-dark projection on a prominent wall in the CBD during the 2027 SALA Festival with the support of Novatech (valued at $10,000). The winner will also receive $2,500 prizemoney from Foodland, a further $2,500 loaded onto a Foodland in-store Credit Card, and their artwork digitally displayed in Foodland Stores across South Australia in SALA Festival 2027.
Applications open: 3 March – Wednesday 13 May 2026 (11:59pm)
This award is exclusively open to artists who are participating in a registered SALA exhibition / event in 2026.
The application form for the SALA in Lights Award will appear as a button on this page when applications open.
3 March / applications open
13 May / applications close (11:59pm)
September / Winner announced at SALA Finissage event (invitation-only)
Whittles Body Corporate Management Services Venue Award
For venues that exceed expectations in supporting artists exhibiting during SALA Festival 2026. One regional and one metropolitan non-arts* venue will each receive a prize of $2,000.
*Venues that exist primarily as an art space (gallery, studio, etc) are not eligible for this award.
Entry is via an online application form which can be completed by a venue representative (self-nomination) or by an artist being exhibited at the venue during SALA Festival. The application form requires statements and supporting images to demonstrate how a venue has gone above and beyond in supporting their exhibiting artists this SALA Festival. Venues can self-identify as metropolitan or regional.
Prizes:
$2,000 +GST cash to the winning metropolitan venue
$2,000 +GST cash to the winning regional venue
Applications open: 1 July – 31 August (11:59pm) 2026.
Venues that have hosted the work of a South Australian artist as part of the 2026 SALA Festival are eligible to nominate/be nominated for this award.
Application for the Venue award is via an online application form which can be completed by a venue representative (self-nomination) or by an artist being exhibited at the venue during SALA Festival.
In either case, the person making the nomination will need to log in to the SALA Online Portal or create a free account. Once logged in, click on ‘Awards’ in the left hand menu. Then click on either the Metropolitan or Regional Venue Award and a new award nomination form will open. Nominations must be submitted by 31 August.
Draft award applications will appear beneath the list of awards. Click the ‘edit draft’ button next to a draft to continue working on it (and go on to submit it).
You will receive a confirmation email after you submit your award nomination. If you do not receive one, please get in touch with SALA Festival to ensure that your award nomination submitted correctly. (08) 7077 0011 / [email protected]
The form asks for:
- supporting images (max 10mb)
- written explanation of how the venue has gone above and beyond this SALA Festival in supporting the exhibiting artist/s.
- Contact details for your exhibiting artist (in the capacity of referee for your nomination)
1 March / SALA Festival registrations open
8 April / Earlybird pricing ends
6 May / SALA Festival registrations close
1 July / Whittles Body Corporate Management Services Venue Award opens
1-31 August / SALA Festival
31 August / Whittles Body Corporate Management Services Venue Award closes for applications at 11:59pm
September – Winner announced
Guildhouse Artist's Choice Award
Artists of any medium, age, or skill level are invited to vote for the SALA Award finalist whose artwork impressed them the most during the 2026 SALA Festival.
Prize: $1,500 cash + 12 Month Guildhouse Accredited membership.
Dates: Voting form will be open from Saturday 1 August – Monday 31 August 2026 (11:59pm)
Finalists of the 2026 SALA Awards are eligible for the Artist’s Choice award (and will be automatically featured on the voting form).
The form will open for voting 1 August and close 31 August. The link to vote will appear on this webpage.
1 August / voting opens
31 August / voting closes
September / Winner announced at SALA Finissage event (invitation-only)
Frequently Asked Questions
Click the ‘+’ symbol to expand and see the answer.
1 March / Award opens for applications
Wed 6 May / Festival registrations close
Wed 13 May / Award applications close 11:59pm
Late July / finalists announced
August / judging occurs during the Festival
September / winner announced
In most cases, you can apply for Awards via an award application form in the SALA Online Portal.
Artists should complete their own applications for the SALA Awards & Opportunities where possible.
Some awards carry obligations (such as delivering an artist talk), and so ‘nominating’ an artist without their full comprehension and acceptance of the award Terms & Conditions is not permitted.
However, supporting an artist to make their own application (knowing that they are able to fulfill the Terms & Conditions if they are successful) is perfectly fine. In this instance, we recommend using the artists’ own words wherever possible, as this tends to benefit the application during the judging process.
Most SALA Awards are exclusively open to artists and venues that are participating in a registered SALA exhibition/event, but each has different criteria -and some are tied to an outcome- so it’s important to read up on each award or opportunity before applying.
Artists should complete their own applications for the SALA Awards & Opportunities where possible for two reasons:
- Some awards carry obligations (such as delivering an artist talk or an exhibition).
- Applications that feature the artist’s own words are more likely to resonate with the judging panel.
A curator, support worker, or friend/family member may support an artist to apply as long as the artist is aware of and able to fulfill the Terms & Conditions if they are successful.
For most of the SALA Awards, the first round of judging is based on the nomination form and yields a selection of finalists. All applicants will be advised of the outcome of their application via the email address provided in the form.
The next round of judging is generally based on real-life visits to finalists’ exhibitions where possible. Judges will visit the exhibition that corresponds to the registration ID number provided in the nomination form, so it is important that nominees in multiple exhibitions pay careful attention to which registration ID they provide.
Most award winners are announced at the conclusion of the Festival.
The registration ID number that you provide in the award nomination form will determine which exhibition the judges will visit if you are a finalist. Please provide the registration ID number that corresponds with the exhibition containing the artwork referred to in your award nomination form.
Artists applying for the Advertiser Contemporary Art Award simply need to provide a registration ID number as proof of participation in the SALA Festival.
Unless specified otherwise, the images that you upload into the award nomination form should be of one artwork. One image should be of the whole artwork, and any other images can show close-up details, texture, or alternative angles of the work.
It is a condition of most (but not all) SALA Awards that if you submit an artwork for an award, it needs to be displayed in your SALA exhibition in the same year. The Advertiser Contemporary Art Award is an exception.
The artwork that you submit in the award form should be created/completed since the last SALA Awards closed (May 2025) and not previously submitted for a SALA Award. If your exhibition contains a mix of old and new work, only the new work can be submitted in the awards.
We reccommend that you start a draft of your Award nomination form, and wait until closer to the deadline to actually submit it. This may allow you more time to develop the work and get an image of it for the form.
Previous finalists have been selected based on material that was indicative of an artwork that wasn’t finished at the time of submission (but was completed for the exhibition in August).
Most of the SALA Awards aim to recognise excellence in an individual artwork.
If an artwork is created by two or more artists working in collaboration, that artwork is eligible for the SALA Awards. However, a group of artists creating individual works for a group exhibition will need to nominate their works individually for the SALA Awards.
Judging visits are not disclosed to nominees, so it is imperative that any changes to exhibition opening times are communicated with the SALA team via phone or email as soon as you become aware of them. Judging cannot be guaranteed when details of the registration change.
If judging your finalist artwork in person is not possible, SALA will request alternative documentation from you. It’s worth noting that previous finalists who have been judged via supplementary documentation have gone on to win their award.
An artist biography can be described as a resume in paragraph form. It details things like relevant study and your top achievements. These are usually written in third-person (eg. “The artist was born in Adelaide”) but will be accepted in first-person (eg. “I was born in Adelaide”) unless stipulated otherwise.
Things you can include:
- relevant study, degrees, qualifications, or noting if the artist is self-taught
- achievements, awards (won or shortlisted for), mentorships (formal or informal), residencies, studios or collectives you may be part of
- if you do not have much experience, you may supplement the above with:
- your influences (other artists)
- what motivates or inspires your work (persons, events, experiences, politics). Usually an artist’s inspiration is saved for an artist statement, but if a statement is not also requested, it is acceptable to include this information in the artist biography (word-count permitting).
An artist statement usually touches on themes, influences, concepts, materials, and processes in your art. It may be written in first or third person.
Broadly speaking, an artist statement can be about your practice in general, or it can relate to a specific artwork. In the context of the SALA Awards, you may want cover both, depending on the word count and what is most important or the judges to know (this may be different for each artist).
For a shorter word count, focus on succinctly conveying the most important things for the judges to know about the artwork in the context of that award. If an award is tied to a theme, ensure that the connection to the theme is conveyed in your statement. For example, an artwork submitted to the Inspiring SA Art in Science Award may not have an obvious tie to science at first glance, but the artist can use their statement to explain the connection (eg. perhaps there is a significant link to science in their process of making).
There are free online tools that you can use to reduce the size of your jpg file (like this one).
If you are using a program such as Photoshop (or equivalent) there is often a Save for Web option that use can use to reduce the file size.
Most of our award forms have a limit of 10MB (10,000kb) per image file.
Jpeg (.jpg) is the most common image format. We recommend that you use this filetype when submitting for the awards (unless asked otherwise) as it will be more likely to save at a reasonable size that our system can handle.
PNG (.png) is a high quality image format but can be higher than is necessary for images that are only going to be viewed on a screen.
TIFF (.tif) is a filetype that will not be accepted by our system. This filetype is meant for files that you are not finished working on, and holds on to all possible data in case you need it in the editing process (meaning that the file is quite big). Try exporting a jpeg from your TIFF file and save them as two separate things.
Please check out our resource dedicated to photographing your work.
You might also consider contracting a photographer to take high quality images of your work.
If you are asked to provide a link to support material, generally this link needs to be ‘publicly viewable’ so that all members of the judging panel can access the content. This can be done via Google Drive, Dropbox, Wondershare, etc. Password protection is fine.
Check out the SALA Link Resource for more help with ths.
Header image by David Hume, winner of the 2022 SALA Solo Photographic Opportunity
Open for Applications
There aren’t any SALA opportunities currently open for applications, but check back later!
Unitcare Services Digital Media Award
This award seeks to encourage experimentation in new media and is for artists working in digital art including computer, moving image, virtual, interactive, sound, and internet platforms.
Prize: $5,000
Applications open: 1 March – Sunday 12 May 2024 (11:59pm)
Artists who are registered in the 2024 SALA Festival with work that is considered to be (or be connected to) ‘digital media’ may apply for this award at no cost.
This may include (but is not limited to):
- computer art
- moving image
- virtual art
- augmented reality art
- interactive art
- sound art
- artwork presented online
Artwork submitted must:
- have been created/completed since May 2023
- not have been submitted to the 2023 SALA Awards
- be displayed at the SALA exhibition/event noted in the form.
Artists can apply for this award by logging in to the SALA Online Portal from 1 March 2024. It is free and easy to create an account.
Once logged in, click on ‘Awards’ in the left menu. Then click on ‘UnitCare Services Digital Media Award’ to open a new application form.
Draft application forms will appear at the bottom of the page as soon as you log in. Click the ‘edit’ button next to a draft to return to it.
You will receive a confirmation email after you submit your award application. If you do not receive one, please get in touch with SALA Festival to ensure that your award application submitted correctly.
The award application form will ask for:
- The registration ID number for the exhibition/event that your submitted artwork will be featured in (eg: R12345)
- a brief statement about your work (max 100 words)
- an image or still of your work
- link to your digital work or a preview of it (optional)
1 March / Award opens for applications
8 May / Festival registrations close
12 May / Award applications close
Late July / finalists announced
1-31 August / judging occurs during the Festival
September / winner announced
Note to galleries: Gallery staff and curators are encouraged to support their artists to make their own award application, rather than do it for them.
Judging: Finalists will be determined (and announced) prior to the Festival based on the work supplied in the nomination form. Judging of the finalist artwork will take place during SALA 2024 and the winner will be announced at the conclusion of the SALA 2024.
