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Many artists read the judging criteria once, decide their work is a good fit, and then put together a submission without referring back to them again.
Understanding how to read and use judging criteria is one of the most effective things you can do to strengthen your application. It can help you choose the right works to submit, shape the way you talk about your practice, and ensure that the story you tell about your work is one that resonates with the people making the decisions.
This guide will show you how to get the most out of the judging criteria for any artist prize or open call, so you can approach every submission with clarity and confidence.
Understanding Judging Criteria
Judging criteria are the standards against which your submission will be assessed. They are set by the organisation running the opportunity and reflect what matters most to them, whether that is artistic quality, originality, relevance to a particular theme, or potential for career development. Understanding what criteria are and how they work is the first step to using them effectively.
What judging criteria are and why they exist
Judging criteria exist to give selectors and judges a consistent framework for assessing what can often be a very large number of submissions. They help to ensure that every application is considered fairly and against the same standards. For you as an applicant, they serve a different but equally important purpose: they tell you precisely what the opportunity is looking for and give you a clear basis on which to build your submission.
How criteria vary between different opportunities
No two opportunities are exactly alike, and their criteria will reflect this. A prize focused on early career artists may place particular emphasis on potential and development, while an open call for a specific exhibition may prioritise relevance to a theme or concept. Some opportunities will have just two or three broad criteria, while others may have a detailed scoring framework covering multiple areas. It is worth taking the time to understand the particular priorities of each opportunity you apply to rather than assuming the criteria will be similar to ones you have encountered before.
The difference between objective and subjective criteria
Some criteria are relatively objective, such as whether your work fits within a stated medium, theme, or career stage. These are straightforward to assess and easy to address in your submission. Others are more subjective, such as artistic quality, originality, or strength of concept, and these require more thought. Subjective criteria can feel harder to respond to, but they are also where you have the most opportunity to make a strong impression. Understanding which criteria fall into each category will help you prioritise where to focus your time and energy when putting your submission together.
Reading the Criteria
Once you understand what judging criteria are and why they exist, the next step is to learn how to read them properly. There is often more information contained within the criteria than first appears, and taking the time to analyse them carefully can give you a real advantage over applicants who read them only at a surface level.
How to break down and interpret the language used
Start by reading the criteria slowly and more than once. Pay attention to the specific words and phrases used, as these are rarely chosen by accident. If the criteria mention words like innovative, experimental, or boundary pushing, this tells you something important about the kind of work the organisation values. If they use words like community, accessibility, or engagement, this points to a different set of priorities. Make a note of the language that stands out and think about how it connects to your own practice and the work you are considering submitting.
Identifying the key priorities of the opportunity
Most sets of criteria will contain a mix of requirements, but not all of them will carry equal weight. Some opportunities will make this explicit by attaching a score or percentage to each criterion, making it clear which areas matter most. Where no weighting is given, look for clues in the way the criteria are ordered and described. The criterion that appears first or is given the most detailed explanation is often the one the judges consider most important. Identifying the top one or two priorities will help you focus your submission where it is most likely to have an impact.
Reading between the lines
Judging criteria rarely exist in isolation. They are shaped by the values, mission, and priorities of the organisation behind the opportunity, and understanding this broader context can help you interpret the criteria more accurately. Before you submit, take some time to look at the organisation’s website, read about their previous winners and selected artists, and get a sense of the kind of work they have championed in the past. This wider picture will help you understand not just what the criteria say, but what they mean in practice, and whether your work is genuinely a good fit for this particular opportunity.
Aligning Your Work with the Criteria
Understanding the criteria is only half of the process. The next step is to use what you have learned to make considered decisions about how you present yourself and your work. This is where the real work of a strong submission begins.
Choosing which works to submit
If you have a body of work to draw from, the criteria should be your primary guide when deciding which pieces to include in your submission. Rather than defaulting to your personal favourites or most recent work, ask yourself which pieces most clearly speak to what the opportunity is looking for. Sometimes these will be the same, but not always. It can help to write the key criteria down and then assess each potential work against them, noting where the connections are strong and where they are weaker. The works that score consistently well across the most important criteria are likely to be your strongest choices.
Presenting your work in a way that speaks to the criteria
The way you present your work matters as much as the work itself. Two artists could submit the same piece and tell completely different stories about it, with very different results. Think about how the images you choose, the order you present them in, and the details you include in your application all contribute to the overall impression you make. Where the criteria emphasise a particular quality, such as process, concept, or context, make sure your submission gives the judges the information they need to assess your work against that quality. Don’t leave them to make connections that you could make for them.
Avoiding the temptation to submit work that doesn’t fit
It can be tempting to apply to an opportunity because it is prestigious, well funded, or simply because the deadline coincides with a moment when you have the time to apply. But submitting work that does not genuinely fit the criteria is rarely a good use of your time or energy. If you find yourself struggling to make a convincing connection between your work and what the opportunity is looking for, it is worth asking honestly whether this is the right opportunity for you at this time. A focused, well aligned submission to the right opportunity will almost always outperform a stretched or forced application to the wrong one.
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Taking an example
Let’s break down an example set of judging criteria from The Artist Prize, which can be found below:
Execution [0-9]
How effectively has the artist realized their work? Consider craft, technical skill, and whether the work achieves what it sets out to do – recognizing that “well-executed” looks different for a performance, a painting, or a participatory project.
Concept [0-9]
The depth and clarity of the artistic idea. Consider intellectual rigor, emotional resonance, and how fully the concept has been developed.
Impact [0-9]
The work’s power and significance. Does it create something greater than its parts? Does it feel urgent, relevant, or culturally important right now?
We can now break down each criteria into focused prompts and questions:
Execution
- Have I presented my work in the best way that I can?
- Do the images and supporting documents accurately demonstrate my skills?
- If someone asked me to explain how this work was made, could I do so with confidence?
- Does the finished work match my original intention, and if not, how did it evolve?
Concept
- What is the concept behind my work?
- Have I explained this to the judge in my supporting documents?
- What ideas, questions, or experiences drove me to make this work?
Impact
- Why does this work matter right now, in this particular moment?
- What do I want someone to feel, think, or question after encountering it?
- Is there something about this work that goes beyond the object or experience itself?
- Why is this work significant, not just to me, but to others?
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Even artists who have taken the time to read and understand the judging criteria carefully can fall into some common traps when putting their submission together. Being aware of these pitfalls in advance can help you avoid them.
Ignoring criteria that seem less important
It can be tempting to focus all of your energy on the criteria you feel most confident addressing and give less attention to the ones that feel harder or less relevant to your practice. This is rarely a good strategy. Even where criteria carry different weightings, a weak response to any one of them can drag down an otherwise strong submission. Try to address every criterion to the best of your ability, even if some feel more naturally aligned with your work than others.
Misinterpreting vague or broad criteria
Some criteria are deliberately broad, using terms like quality, originality, or impact without much further explanation. It can be easy to project your own assumptions onto language like this and assume you know what the judges mean. Where criteria feel vague, go back to the wider context of the opportunity. Look at the organisation’s mission, their previous selected artists, and the overall aims of the prize or open call. This will help you build a more accurate picture of what those broad terms mean in practice for this particular opportunity.
Writing a generic supporting statement
One of the most common mistakes artists make is writing a supporting statement that could apply to any opportunity. If you find yourself reusing large sections of a previous statement without much adjustment, this is a sign that your response is not specific enough. Judges read a large number of applications and a generic statement is easy to spot. Every supporting statement you write should be tailored to the specific criteria and context of the opportunity you are applying to, using the language and priorities of that opportunity as your guide.
Overselling or underselling your work
Striking the right tone in a submission can be difficult. Some artists oversell their work, making claims about its significance or impact that feel exaggerated or unsubstantiated. Others undersell it, describing it in vague or overly modest terms that fail to convey its real strength. The criteria can help you find the right balance. Use them as a framework for talking about your work with clarity and confidence, grounding what you say in the specific qualities the judges are looking for rather than making broader claims that are harder to support.
Applying to the wrong opportunity
Perhaps the most significant mistake of all is submitting work to an opportunity that is not the right fit, simply because it is available or appealing for other reasons. If you have worked through the criteria carefully and are struggling to make a genuine connection with your work, take that seriously. A submission that stretches to fit the criteria is unlikely to compete with one where the alignment is natural and clear.
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Final Checks
Before you submit your application, it is worth taking a step back and reviewing everything you have put together with fresh eyes. A few final checks can make the difference between a good submission and a great one.
Reviewing your submission against the criteria
Go back to the judging criteria one last time and read through your submission with them open in front of you. For each criterion, ask yourself honestly whether your submission gives the judges what they need to assess your work against it. If you find any gaps, this is the moment to address them. It can help to imagine you are a judge seeing your submission for the first time, with no prior knowledge of you or your practice. Is everything they need to know there on the page?
Checking the practical requirements
As well as reviewing the content of your submission, make sure you have met all of the practical requirements of the opportunity. Check that your images are in the correct format, at the right resolution, and within any stated file size limits. Make sure your files are named correctly and that your supporting statement falls within any word count specified. These details can feel minor, but failing to meet the basic requirements of a submission can result in it being disqualified before it even reaches the judges.
Getting feedback from another reader
If you have the opportunity to do so, ask a trusted colleague, fellow artist, or mentor to read through your submission before you send it. Ask them specifically to consider whether your statement addresses the criteria clearly and whether the work you have selected feels like a strong fit for the opportunity. Fresh eyes will often pick up on things you have missed, whether that is an unclear sentence, a missed opportunity to address a criterion more directly, or simply a typo that spell check failed to catch.
Knowing when an opportunity is not the right fit
If you have worked through all of these checks and something still does not feel right, trust that instinct. Not every opportunity is the right one, and there is real value in being honest with yourself about where your work is most likely to be understood and appreciated. Withdrawing from an application you are not confident in is not a failure. It frees up your time and energy to find and focus on the opportunities where your work can truly shine.
A final word
Judging criteria are not there to trip you up or to narrow the field arbitrarily. They are an invitation to present your work in the clearest and most compelling way possible. Artists who take the time to understand and respond to them thoughtfully will almost always produce stronger submissions than those who treat them as a formality. Approach them with curiosity and care, and let them guide you towards putting your very best work forward.
