Where Culture Lives Artist Prize opens February 23

GREAT BAY--The Where Culture Lives (WCL) project has announced the launch of the WCL Artist Prize, an open call inviting artists and creatives in Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, St. Eustatius, and St. Maarten to submit original work interpreting where and how culture lives in their communities.

Submissions open Monday, February 23, 2026, and close Monday, March 25, 2026. Artists may submit work in any medium or format, including painting, music, poetry, photography, performance, film, culinary arts, and digital media. Entries must be sent via email to whereculturelivesproject@gmail.com

The project will award artists on each island with first, second, and third prizes of $500, $250, and $125, respectively, with winners recognized during the WCL Validation Sessions scheduled across the islands in the second half of April 2026. Judging is set to begin March 26, 2026, with winners expected to be announced afterward in April.

“Our culture and heritage is felt, not only in museums but also in our streets, kitchens, festivals and in our everyday experiences as Caribbean people,” said Jorien Wuite, Principal Coordinator and Director of Lemonade B.V., explaining that the prize is intended to give artists space to show, in their own language, where culture truly lives on their island.

Organizers described the prize as a “parallel knowledge stream” running alongside the WCL research, designed to surface cultural life through everyday places, traditions, and stories rooted in local experience and creative practice. Submissions may connect past and present, reflect struggle and strength, or explore belonging and community identity, with emphasis on work that residents will recognize and resonate with.

The WCL team said the prize supports broader participation and relevance, and is intended to help bridge research and community by combining research, dialogue, and artistic expression ahead of the Validation Sessions.

Artists are asked to include their name, island, title of the work, and type of art, along with a short statement explaining what the piece shows about “where culture lives” on their island. Submissions can be shared as files or as download links such as WeTransfer or Google Drive. Artists must also provide permission for the WCL project to use submitted works in project outputs, and include contact details for email and phone or WhatsApp.

Artists may submit in any language and may contact the team with questions during the submission period via whereculturelivesproject@gmail.com

Project background

The Where Culture Lives project was commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) in The Hague and on Bonaire (OCW and OCW-CG), and is managed by St. Maarten-based consultancy Lemonade B.V.

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