.ART Award adds four partner prizes for artists

.ART Registry added four partner prizes to its 2026 .ART Award, bringing the total prize pool to more than $50,000 as artist applications remain open through Nov. 1. Winners will be announced Dec. 4 during Miami Art Week and Art Basel Miami.

Why it matters: - The expanded prize slate gives artists more paths to recognition, funding, and exposure across physical, digital, and residency-based opportunities. - The 2026 .ART Award now reaches beyond cash awards into exhibition placement, blockchain-focused visibility, augmented reality support, and an international residency. - The prize pool tops $50,000 and includes a $15,000 grand prize.

What happened: - .ART Registry announced four new partner prizes for the 2026 .ART Award. - The new partners are Disiva, Art on Tezos, illust., and the Ria Keburia Foundation. - The .ART Award opened in May as part of .ART's 10th anniversary celebration. - Artist applications are open through Nov. 1, 2026. - Winners will be announced in December, with the award ceremony set for Dec. 4 at BitBasel during Miami Art Week and Art Basel Miami.

The details: - The Disiva Prize will give one artist a 10-second slot in a public digital exhibition on Times Square in New York in May 2027. - The Disiva opportunity is open to artists working in digital art, moving image, artificial intelligence, generative systems, photography, architecture, and expanded media, as long as the work can be presented in a compatible digital format. - The Art on Tezos Prize will award one artist 5,000 tez and a dedicated artist spotlight on Tezos' main social media channel. - The Art on Tezos Prize recognizes artistic innovation within the Tezos ecosystem and supports work at the intersection of technology and fine art. - The AR illust. Prize will provide one artist with a $3,000 package made up of cash and/or products, services, credits, and other support from illust. - The illust. platform lets artists place digital works at real-world coordinates through augmented reality tools including Illust. AR Studio and Memoria. - The Ria Keburia Foundation Artist-in-Residence Prize will provide a one-month residency in Kachreti, Georgia, in 2027. - The residency includes three weeks at the Foundation's Kachreti Artist-in-Residence program and one week in Tbilisi. - The residency covers food, travel expenses, and transportation to and from Kachreti. - Other prizes in the inaugural .ART Award include the $15,000 cash grand prize, artist residencies at Château du Fresne in France and Anfitrion.art in Spain, a featured profile in Whitewall Magazine, and a premium .ART domain valued at $10,000. - Applications are available at award.art.

Between the lines: - The prize mix shows .ART trying to serve both traditional art-world goals and newer digital-native practices. - The partner awards also signal that arts branding, blockchain communities, and location-based digital platforms are using prize programs to recruit and elevate artists. - The inclusion of a Times Square exhibition, a Tezos-focused award, and an AR residency suggests the program is designed to reward both visibility and experimentation.

What's next: - Artists can apply through Nov. 1, 2026. - The nine prize winners will be revealed on Dec. 4 during Miami Art Week and Art Basel Miami. - Selected artists will take up their prizes in 2027, including the Times Square exhibition and the Georgia residency.

The bottom line: - .ART is broadening its award into a cross-platform showcase for artists working across physical and digital media.