Guildford Festival of the Arts 2026

Open call for the 2026 edition of this Surrey arts festival, accepting any visual art of any medium that can be displayed in a gallery or on a screen — photography included. There is no set theme. Two tracks run in parallel: an Open Call for artists aged 18 and over, and a separate Student Open Call. The 2026 judging panel is Sally Varah MBE DL, Councillor Jane Tyson (Mayor of Guildford), artist Monica Popham and photographer Andy Newbold. Everyone's first submission is free; further artworks go through a separate paid form. Alongside the £1,000 first prize there is a £500 runner-up prize, a £150 gift voucher for the student winner and an exhibition at New House Art Space for the Public Vote winner. Selected artists are notified by email in late August or early September and may sell work through the festival team during the festival, on which a 15% commission is retained to fund the following year's edition. Artists should submit once; a series, diptych or triptych should be sent as a single image encompassing the whole piece. The inaugural 2025 festival drew over 2,400 visits across 20 venues.