A panel of distinguished jurors will review all submissions that meet the eligibility requirements. The jurors will choose ten semi-finalists and visit these artists’s studios in late July to early August 2025. CAM curatorial staff will also attend the visits; however, the selection process will be made exclusively by the three jurors.
The call for artists for Great Rivers Biennial 2026 is now open. The application will be available until June 1 at 11:59 pm CT.
Eligibility Requirements for Artists
This opportunity is open to artists working in all media, including drawing, ceramics, film and video, installation, painting, performance, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and textiles, among others.
The Great Rivers Biennial is open to artists living in the following counties in Missouri and Illinois:
- Missouri: St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Jefferson County, or St. Charles County.
- Illinois: St. Clair County or Madison County.
Artists must have been resident in one of these counties for a minimum of one year prior to application (since June 1, 2024 or earlier).
Artists must continue to reside in this region throughout the designated planning, production, and exhibition period (August 2025 through February 2027).
- Applicants must be 18 years of age or older.
- Previous recipients of a Great Rivers Biennial award are ineligible.
- Artists enrolled in graduate or post-graduate programs in the St. Louis Metropolitan Region are eligible if they meet the residency requirements above. Undergraduate and high school students are not eligible.
- Artist collectives (2 or more artists) are eligible, provided no member is a previous Great Rivers Biennial award recipient. Applications should note all collective members. If an award is offered, it will be divided equally among members.
- Semi-finalists must be available for an in-person studio visit with the jurors in late July or early August 2025, between 9:00 AM and 7:00 PM. If the artist does not have a studio, an alternative space may be arranged. Ten semi-finalists will be selected for these visits, which cannot be conducted via phone or video.
Resources
Past Recipients
2024 Saj Issa, Basil Kincaid, and Ronald Young
2022 Yowshien Kuo, Yvonne Osei, and Jon Young
2020 Kahlil Robert Irving, Tim Portlock, and Rachel Youn
2018 Addoley Dzegede, Sarah Paulsen, and Jacob Stanley
2016 Lyndon Barrois Jr., Nanette Boileau, and Tate Foley
2014 Brandon Anschultz, Carlie Trosclair, and Cayce Zavaglia
2012 David Johnson, Asma Kazmi, and Mel Trad
2010 Martin Brief, Sarah Frost, and Cameron Fuller
2008 Juan William Chávez, Corey Escoto, Michelle Oosterbaan
2006 Jason Wallace Triefenbach, Moses, and Matthew Strauss
2004 Jill Downen, Adam Frelin, and Kim Humphries