Open Call & Submission Guidelines
Artists are invited to submit works responding to the 2027 Festival theme “Lost in Translation.”
About the Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival
The Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research established the Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival in 2013. Starting as a modest gathering of 30 emerging local artists, it has grown into the emirate’s leading art and cultural festival.
Previously known as the Ras Al Khaimah Fine Arts Festival, it evolved into the RAK Art Festival — a dynamic creative platform supporting local and international talent through its annual festival, grants, workshops, training events, and year-round programming. Located in the historic heritage village of Al Jazeera Al Hamra, the Festival provides a unique space where international art meets Emirati cultural heritage.
Lost in Translation
For the Ras Al Khaimah Art 2027 Festival, we invite you to submit your proposals around the theme of “Lost in Translation.” Inspired by Sofia Coppola’s iconic film (2003), the festival takes “translation” as a central idea and metaphor. It is not only about language but also about emotions, culture, and the experience of being in a place where you do not fully belong. It is about the distance between people, quiet loneliness, and the deep human desire to transform and connect even when understanding seems incomplete.
This theme becomes a framework for thinking about transformation and adaptation in our contemporary world. Many people move between countries, cultures, and identities, adapting to new environments, new expectations, and new ways of life — but what does this process require emotionally? What does it mean to search for your place in a world that feels foreign? When does adaptation empower you, and when does it make you feel marginalized?
This exhibition invites artists to explore the experience of being “in between.” In between languages, cultures, past and present. It encourages works that reflect miscommunication, emotional distance, or the quiet effort it takes to feel understood.
Artists may reflect on migration, memory, belonging, or the tension between personal identity and public roles. They may explore how meaning shifts when it moves from one context to another, or how places and landscapes can create connection or isolation.
Lost in Translation is about discovery. It suggests that moments of uncertainty can lead to deeper self-understanding. Through the experience of difference and adaptation, new forms of connection, strength, and identity can emerge.
Curator
Sharon Toval
Sharon Toval is a contemporary art curator and researcher whose work is shaped by multicultural experiences and global perspectives. He has curated exhibitions internationally and founded The Lab, an experimental art space supporting emerging artists. Toval’s notable projects span the U.S., Switzerland, the UK, the Netherlands, and the UAE, including key exhibitions for the Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival. As curator of Civilizations Under the Same Sky, he views art as a bridge for empathy, dialogue, and rethinking cultural perspectives, with a focus on identity and marginalized narratives. He is also involved in global initiatives for equality in the arts and lectures internationally on art theory and new media.
Who Can Apply
The open call welcomes artists and filmmakers from all nationalities and backgrounds, regardless of gender, religion, or geographic location. Applicants can apply under one category only.
Emerging Artists
Artists developing their practice and beginning to exhibit professionally, including those currently enrolled in or recently graduated from artistic programs.
Established Artists
Artists with a sustained professional practice and a minimum of two solo exhibitions in galleries, museums, or comparable institutions.
Filmmakers
Emerging filmmakers working in narrative, documentary, or animation formats, with at least one short film previously screened publicly.
Students
Young artists enrolled in K-12 education, ages 6–19.
Eligible Medium
Submission Requirements
- Up to two (2) artworks per medium, in no more than two (2) different mediums (maximum of four artworks in total)
- A statement (maximum 100 words) describing the work and its connection to the theme
- Personal details, CV, and biography (maximum 200 words)
- No submission fee
- Works previously submitted to the Festival within the last four years are not eligible
- Failure to provide final materials by stated deadlines may result in exclusion
Technical Specs by Medium
Select a medium below to view its specific submission requirements.
Photography, Paintings & Drawings
High-resolution files are not required at the submission stage and will only be requested if the work is selected.
Selection Timeline
6 April – 5 June 2026
Open call for submissions
5 June 2026
Submission deadline
30 July 2026
Selection notifications sent by email
15 August 2026
Final documentation due from selected artists
11 December 2026
Arrival of selected sculptures / installations on site
22 January 2027
Festival opening
6 April – 5 June 2026
Open call for submissions
5 June 2026
Submission deadline
30 July 2026
Selection notifications sent by email
15 August 2026
Final documentation due from selected artists
11 December 2026
Arrival of selected sculptures / installations on site
22 January 2027
Festival opening
Awards
Grand Jury Prize
One overall winning work across all mediums
Website feature and press mention
Photo of the Year
1st Prize: AED 6,000 + Trophy
2nd Prize: AED 4,000 + Trophy
Painting/Drawing of the Year
1st Prize: AED 6,000 + Trophy
2nd Prize: AED 4,000 + Trophy
Sculpture/Installation of the Year
AED 6,000 + Trophy
Video Art of the Year
AED 6,000 + Trophy
Best Documentary Short Film
AED 6,000 + Trophy
Best Narrative Short Film
AED 6,000 + Trophy
Best Student Artwork
6–12 years old
AED 2,000 + Trophy
11–19 years old
AED 2,000 + Trophy
Conditions of Entry
All works must be original and created by the artist. By submitting, the artist represents and warrants that the work does not infringe upon any third-party rights, including copyright, trademark, moral rights, or rights of privacy.
The Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival is a public event suitable for all audiences. Works containing explicit violence, sexual content, or offensive material may be excluded.
Artists must hold the full legal rights, title, and interest in the submitted works. The Festival and its organizers shall not be liable for any claims, disputes, or legal actions arising from copyright infringement or unauthorized use of third-party material by the artist.
By submitting, artists grant the Festival a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to photograph, publish, display, and use images of submitted works for promotional and non-commercial purposes, including catalogues, press releases and media coverage, marketing and promotional materials, website and social media channels.
Artists must disclose at the time of submission whether the work was created, in whole or in part, using AI tools, including generative AI. If AI tools were used, the artist must clearly describe the extent and nature of their use. The artist acknowledges and warrants the legal right to use any AI-generated content and that it does not infringe third-party intellectual property rights. The Festival reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to accept, reject, or categorize AI-assisted or AI-generated works. Failure to disclose AI use may result in disqualification or removal at any stage.
Selected artists are responsible for all shipping, transport, and installation costs for sculptures and installations.
The Festival does not mediate artwork sales but may connect interested buyers directly with artists.
The Festival Committee reserves the right to disqualify or remove any submission that does not comply with these guidelines at any stage.
Ready to Submit Your Work?
Applications are open until 5 June, 2026. Choose your submission category and apply now.