Explore the surreal and take part in The Box’s 2025 Children and Young People’s Art Competition

By: Jo Clarke
Added: 07 January 2025

Calling all young budding artists from across Devon! How would you like to have your work displayed alongside famous names like Man Ray and Salvador Dali?

The Box, in partnership with Arts University Plymouth, has launched its annual Children and Young People’s Art Competition, and this year’s theme is inspired by Surrealism – a famous art movement from the 1900s that explored the creative potential of the mind and challenged reality. Anyone aged up to 25 years old living in both Devon and Cornwall can take part. The winners will receive a £150 voucher to spend at The Box and see their work put on show alongside a nationally touring exhibition.

The title for this year’s competition is 'Surreal Estates' and entrants are being asked to use surrealist techniques like collage, photomontage or echo poems to explore the landscape around them.

Three different age categories – primary school, secondary school and 18-25 years – are available and work can be submitted in any medium including film (max 30 seconds). To take part all you need to do is email a high quality photograph of your artwork or send your film to theboxcompetition@plymouth.gov.uk.

Label the file with your initials, the date and category. For example: the label for Joe Bloggs who submits an entry on 24 February in the young person’s category would be JB240225YP (use P for the primary school category or S for the secondary school category). 

The closing date for all entries is 5pm on 4 April 2025.

“We really hope as many children and young people as possible from across the region will take part this year, said Tony Davey, Engagement Officer at The Box. “They can take inspiration from so many places – home, school, college, university, work, the beach, the countryside or more. We have some really talented young artists here in the South West and have received some fantastic entries since we started running this competition a couple of years ago. We can’t wait to see what everyone submits this time around.”

The winners and a selection of entries from the competition will go on display at The Box at the same time as ‘Forbidden Territories: 100 Years of Surreal Landscapes’ (24 May-7 September). This major exhibition celebrates a century of Surrealism and explores its enduring influence with imagined universes, bizarre features and dreamlike scenes by an array of British and international artists.