Entry for the 2024 contest has now opened!
2023 Winners (out of about 2,007 entries from 34 countries and 20 US states)
-- Click the thumbnails below to see the full images with text. --
2023 Winners (out of about 2,007 entries from 34 countries and 20 US states)
-- Click the thumbnails below to see the full images with text. --
You can view other entries on our public Festival of Owls Facebook page.
HISTORY
This owl art contest started around 2004 as a coloring contest to involve local young people in the Festival of Owls. Over the years it has grown into a highly competitive international art competition with over 2,000 entries from dozens of countries each year.
HISTORY
This owl art contest started around 2004 as a coloring contest to involve local young people in the Festival of Owls. Over the years it has grown into a highly competitive international art competition with over 2,000 entries from dozens of countries each year.
Entry Rules
Please follow ALL rules and instructions, as entries that do not follow the rules WILL be disqualified and CANNOT be returned.
If you would like a version of these instructions in a language not listed here, please email andie@internationalowlcenter.org
Правила художественного конкурса
艺术竞赛规则
Please follow ALL rules and instructions, as entries that do not follow the rules WILL be disqualified and CANNOT be returned.
If you would like a version of these instructions in a language not listed here, please email andie@internationalowlcenter.org
Правила художественного конкурса
艺术竞赛规则
Participation:
Children must be age 18 or younger on the date their entry is mailed. There may be no help from adults with any part of the piece. Entries are accepted from any country in the world.
Entrants will be separated into age categories as follows:
There is no entry fee for participation.
Limit 1 entry per person and 50 entries per school if mailed by the school in a package. If more than 50 students from one school want to enter, those that are not selected by the school to be part of their package may be mailed individually by the students.
Siblings may mail their entries together.
All entries become the property of the International Owl Center and cannot be returned due to the large volume of entries received.
Entries may be used for decoration, fundraising, promotional purposes, or printed materials for sale. This may include using them as decoration during the International Festival of Owls and throughout the year, selling them in the Owl Center gift shop, auctioning them in fundraisers, temporary display at other facilities (such as museums and galleries), making them into greeting cards to be used and sold, featuring them on shirts and other promotional materials, and other uses.
By entering the contest, artists acknowledge that their entries will become the property of the International Owl Center and will not be returned, even if disqualified.
Children must be age 18 or younger on the date their entry is mailed. There may be no help from adults with any part of the piece. Entries are accepted from any country in the world.
Entrants will be separated into age categories as follows:
- 0-5 years
- 6-9 years
- 10-14 years
- 15-18 years
There is no entry fee for participation.
Limit 1 entry per person and 50 entries per school if mailed by the school in a package. If more than 50 students from one school want to enter, those that are not selected by the school to be part of their package may be mailed individually by the students.
Siblings may mail their entries together.
All entries become the property of the International Owl Center and cannot be returned due to the large volume of entries received.
Entries may be used for decoration, fundraising, promotional purposes, or printed materials for sale. This may include using them as decoration during the International Festival of Owls and throughout the year, selling them in the Owl Center gift shop, auctioning them in fundraisers, temporary display at other facilities (such as museums and galleries), making them into greeting cards to be used and sold, featuring them on shirts and other promotional materials, and other uses.
By entering the contest, artists acknowledge that their entries will become the property of the International Owl Center and will not be returned, even if disqualified.
Media:
Entries must be an image of an owl. Artwork must be two-dimensional, on any size paper that can be mailed and hung on a wall with tape. Entries cannot contain any plant or animal materials as a medium (no grasses, seeds, fur, feathers, etc.) as it is illegal to ship these internationally.
Digital artwork is allowed if printed, labeled, and mailed as required for other entries. No AI may be used for digital artwork entries.
No frames or mattes may be used on the artwork. If using canvas, the canvas must be removed from the wooden frame or it will be disqualified. We recommend mounting fragile papers like rice papers on a sturdier piece of paper or backing as it can be easily damaged during shipping.
Entries must be an image of an owl. Artwork must be two-dimensional, on any size paper that can be mailed and hung on a wall with tape. Entries cannot contain any plant or animal materials as a medium (no grasses, seeds, fur, feathers, etc.) as it is illegal to ship these internationally.
Digital artwork is allowed if printed, labeled, and mailed as required for other entries. No AI may be used for digital artwork entries.
No frames or mattes may be used on the artwork. If using canvas, the canvas must be removed from the wooden frame or it will be disqualified. We recommend mounting fragile papers like rice papers on a sturdier piece of paper or backing as it can be easily damaged during shipping.
Entries must be an image of an owl.
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Entries cannot contain any plant or animal materials as a medium (no grasses, seeds, fur, feathers, etc.).
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Digital artwork is allowed if printed, labeled, and mailed as required for other entries.
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No frames or mattes may be used on the artwork.
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If using canvas, the canvas must be removed from the wooden frame or it will be disqualified.
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Submission:
Artwork must be properly labeled. Print out this form and TAPE the small label to the bottom right corner of the front of the image (place tape on the sides--do not apply tape to the front of the art), and TAPE the larger form to the back of the image. Do not use glue, rubber cement or double-sided tape. If you do not think the tape you are using will hold well enough, please use paper clips to help hold the submission forms to the art. All unremovable methods of attaching both front and back labels WILL result in disqualification. Labels must be able to be removed from the art for display, selling them in the Owl Center gift shop, auctioning them in fundraisers, greeting cards to be used and sold, featuring on shirts and other promotional materials for International Owl Awareness Day, and other uses.
Artwork must be properly labeled. Print out this form and TAPE the small label to the bottom right corner of the front of the image (place tape on the sides--do not apply tape to the front of the art), and TAPE the larger form to the back of the image. Do not use glue, rubber cement or double-sided tape. If you do not think the tape you are using will hold well enough, please use paper clips to help hold the submission forms to the art. All unremovable methods of attaching both front and back labels WILL result in disqualification. Labels must be able to be removed from the art for display, selling them in the Owl Center gift shop, auctioning them in fundraisers, greeting cards to be used and sold, featuring on shirts and other promotional materials for International Owl Awareness Day, and other uses.
Tape the small label to the bottom right corner of the front of the image. Place tape on the bottom and right side and fold the tape around to the back of the art.
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Tape the larger label to the back of the image with ONE piece of tape along the top of the label.
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Use single-sided tape.
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No double-sided tape
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No glue of any kind
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No paper or rubber cement
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No staples
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No poster putty or adhesives (sticky squares)
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Do not attach the small label to the back of the piece.
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Do not encase either label in tape.
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PLEASE WRITE NEATLY or type the information so it is easily legible. If we mail you a prize or card we will use the address you list on this form, so please make sure it is a complete mailing address. It is acceptable to use a school address.
Click here to see a video of how to properly label and mail entries. Improperly labeled artwork will be disqualified from the competition and CANNOT be mailed back.
*We recommend using cardboard or other stiff material when packaging your art to help protect it from damage in transit.
You must send us the original art. We will not accept photocopies or e-mailed entries. Entries must be RECEIVED by January 15, 2024. Please allow adequate time for delivery, which often can take 3-4 weeks from some countries, and sometimes takes as much as 6-8 weeks. No entries will be accepted after January 15th. Late entries will NOT be held for the next year's competition.
NOTE: Use enough postage, as "postage due" entries will not be accepted.
Entries should be mailed through the postal service to:
International Festival of Owls
PO Box 536
Houston, MN 55943
USA
Entries mailed through DHL, UPS, and FedEx should be mailed to:
International Owl Center
126 E Cedar St
Houston, MN 55943
USA
+1 507-896-6957
Note: Specify Houston, MN as there are multiple towns/cities named "Houston" in the USA.
Click here to see a video of how to properly label and mail entries. Improperly labeled artwork will be disqualified from the competition and CANNOT be mailed back.
*We recommend using cardboard or other stiff material when packaging your art to help protect it from damage in transit.
You must send us the original art. We will not accept photocopies or e-mailed entries. Entries must be RECEIVED by January 15, 2024. Please allow adequate time for delivery, which often can take 3-4 weeks from some countries, and sometimes takes as much as 6-8 weeks. No entries will be accepted after January 15th. Late entries will NOT be held for the next year's competition.
NOTE: Use enough postage, as "postage due" entries will not be accepted.
Entries should be mailed through the postal service to:
International Festival of Owls
PO Box 536
Houston, MN 55943
USA
Entries mailed through DHL, UPS, and FedEx should be mailed to:
International Owl Center
126 E Cedar St
Houston, MN 55943
USA
+1 507-896-6957
Note: Specify Houston, MN as there are multiple towns/cities named "Houston" in the USA.
Judging Criteria and Prizes:
All entries with a legible email address will receive an emailed certificate of participation that may be printed out. Due to the large volume of entries we receive the participation certificates are not customized with the names of the entrants. You may add the artist's name to the certificate. Schools that mail a package of entries will receive one PDF certificate so teachers can print as many copies as needed and write the students' names on the certificates. If mailing from a school, please include an email for the teacher/school and an email for the student/guardian.
All properly labeled entries will be judged by a panel of area artists.
Judges are looking for:
1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in each age category will be mailed a framed, customized and signed award certificate with a custom wax seal. Winners will receive an email notifying them they have won by the middle of February. The award certificate will be mailed to winners by mid-March and images will be posted on this website by mid-March. A variety of photos showing a sampling of entries and judging will be posted on our public Facebook page in February and March. Due to the large number of entries, not all artwork will be photographed or displayed, and we cannot notify those that are shown in photographs. We will make every effort to notify artists whose work is placed on special exhibit in museums and galleries or used to make T-shirts, cards, or other items
All entries with a legible email address will receive an emailed certificate of participation that may be printed out. Due to the large volume of entries we receive the participation certificates are not customized with the names of the entrants. You may add the artist's name to the certificate. Schools that mail a package of entries will receive one PDF certificate so teachers can print as many copies as needed and write the students' names on the certificates. If mailing from a school, please include an email for the teacher/school and an email for the student/guardian.
All properly labeled entries will be judged by a panel of area artists.
Judges are looking for:
- innovative presentation
- unusual perspective or viewpoint
- a message or idea that is being conveyed
- skill with the medium appropriate to the age group (although sometimes the significance of the message is more important than the medium)
- colors coordinated or contrasted for emotional impact
- design elements that work together
- humor
1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in each age category will be mailed a framed, customized and signed award certificate with a custom wax seal. Winners will receive an email notifying them they have won by the middle of February. The award certificate will be mailed to winners by mid-March and images will be posted on this website by mid-March. A variety of photos showing a sampling of entries and judging will be posted on our public Facebook page in February and March. Due to the large number of entries, not all artwork will be photographed or displayed, and we cannot notify those that are shown in photographs. We will make every effort to notify artists whose work is placed on special exhibit in museums and galleries or used to make T-shirts, cards, or other items
Important Dates:
Entry Start date: Aug. 15, 2023
Entry Close date: Jan. 15. 2024*
Result date: Feb. 28, 2024
*No entries will be accepted after January 15th.
Entry Start date: Aug. 15, 2023
Entry Close date: Jan. 15. 2024*
Result date: Feb. 28, 2024
*No entries will be accepted after January 15th.
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts & cultural heritage fund.
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The International Festival of Owls is a fundraiser for the International Owl Center and the Center’s biggest event of the year.
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