Art Competition Scholarship – SGC/IAC 2026

Calling all creatives! SGAC invites artists from all walks of life to share their vision of space through art. Whether you’re a painter, sculptor or musician, we want your help in inspiring the next generation of space leaders through your work.

Thanks to the generous donation of a SGAC Alumnus, SGAC will bring one student or young professional to attend the to attend the 24th Space Generation Congress (1 – 3 October, 2026) and the 77th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) (5 – 9 October, 2026) in Antalya, Türkiye.

Application Deadline: 7 June 2026, 23:59 GMT

Award

The award will support one student or young professional to attend the following events in Antalya, Türkiye:

• 24th Space Generation Congress: 1 – 3 October, 2026
• 77th International Astronautical Congress: 5 – 9 October, 2026

The grant will be provided as total or partial reimbursement to cover:

• Round trip travel costs to Antalya, Türkiye via economy airfare
• Lodging at the official SGC hotel, or equivalent
• Visa costs (if any)
• Space Generation Congress registration fee
• International Astronautical Congress registration fee

How to Apply

To apply, you will need to complete the Scholarship Submission Form at the bottom, including your artwork, by 7 June 2026, 23:59 GMT.

Theme

Your submission should explore one or both of the following themes:

• IAC 2026 Theme: The World Needs More Space
• SGC 2026 Theme: Under One Moon, Across All Nations

Accepted Forms of Art

• Physical Visual Art: paintings, drawings, or sculptures (please no metaverse or purely digital artwork).
• While we encourage original creations, you may submit a previously completed piece if it fits the theme.

Selection Criteria

Works will be evaluated based on:

• Relevance to the theme
• Artistic impact and originality
• Thoughtfulness of the artist statement
• Creative storytelling and emotional connection
• We can’t wait to see how you interpret space through your eyes, hands, and heart. Join us in shaping a sustainable and inclusive future in space—one brushstroke, note, or click at a time.

Guidelines

Eligibility

• This application is strictly open to young professionals and students between the ages of 18 and 35 at the time of the event.
• Open to all artists worldwide — you do not need a career or background in the space industry (in fact, we’d love to win you over!).
• Art can have been previously submitted to another SGAC competition and can have won previous competitions, except SGAC art competitions. 
• All submissions shall be original creations.
• Limited to one artistic contribution created by a single artist. 
• All submissions shall be made using the online form provided. Any submissions after the deadline will not be considered. The Selection Committee reserves the right to extend the competition deadline.
• If you used AI tools in any part of the creative process, please declare it and include a brief explanation of how AI was used.
• By submitting your artwork you are affirming your availability to attend SGC and IAC 2026 in person. 
• The language of all submissions must be in English.
• Each submission should include the following:
  • Name and contact info of the artist
  • Title and short description of the artwork. Include the medium of the artwork. (limited to 200 words or 1-minute video)
  • Artwork as a (printable) high-quality file (.png or .pdf for example) or music performance as video link

In the interest of spreading opportunities to more members, previous art competition winners are not eligible for this scholarship. SGAC reserves the right to prioritize applicants who have not recently received another SGAC scholarship of a similar nature. “Recently” is defined as having received a travel grant in the past 2 years, in the same category (either international or regional/national) as this posted award. 

Submission

1. The application shall be submitted via the Scholarship Submission Form. 
2. The language of all submissions shall be English.
3. Upload a visual or audio representation of your artwork (image or recording).
4. Bring the original physical artwork to SGC 2026, where it will be presented to the global space community.
5. Submit a written or recorded artist statement (verbal or written) explaining the purpose and message of your piece in relation to the theme.
6. SGAC has the right to extend and/or cancel the competition.

Responsibilities of the Winner

Be aware! This scholarship is meant to mainly support attendants to the SGC. Paper presentations, or any other commitments for IAC are not a requirement.  

Responsibilities

• Attend the entire 24th Space Generation Congress and 77th International Astronautical Congress
• Support the running of the 24th Space Generation Congress. These tasks offer great opportunities such as being the rapporteur of a 24th Space Generation working group and helping with writing a group report.
• Contribute to the SGC 2026 final report
• Submit a short video (1 min) and 1-page report (excluding pictures) describing their experience at the 24th Space Generation Congress for inclusion on the SGAC website, newsletter or social media and that of our partners. Example of content: speakers that were particularly interesting, group discussions that stood out or other event highlights.

Reimbursement

• The award will be paid out after the 24th Space Generation Congress and the 77th International Astronautical Congress, no later than 45 days after fulfillment of all responsibilities.
• The scholarship award reimbursement is conditioned on the awardee fulfilling the scholarship requirements not later than November 16th, 2026.
• In case the winner receives funding for SGC or IAC by any other organisation, the Scholarships Coordinators shall be informed. If the applicants don’t inform the Scholarships Coordinators, SGAC holds the right to not reimburse the winning author. SGAC aims to reduce the number of double scholarships and will work with the winners to develop a solution in these cases.
• Applicants are advised to not engage any expenses until they have formal confirmation that the competition has been awarded. The SGAC is not liable for any expenses incurred by applicants in any case where a competition is not awarded, or in excess of the value of the awarded grant.
• Reimbursements will follow the SGAC Scholarships Travel Policy & Reimbursement Guidelines. Please make sure to consult the Guidelines before incurring in expenses. Please, note that on top of the items mentioned in the SGAC Scholarships Reimbursement guidelines, this scholarship also covers local transport and meals.

Please visit SGAC scholarships Reimbursement Form for the reimbursement form and additional information on the reimbursement process.

Copyright and Intellectual Property

1. By submitting your work, you agree to grant the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License. This confirms that you hold the copyrights to your work, with SGAC being allowed to display your work on its website, social media, and other web, digital, and print related platforms, on which you will be attributed.
2. By submitting your work, you confirm that you have read and understood the SGAC Code of Conduct, and that your work is in line with the spirit of all SGAC Governance Policies.
3. By submitting your work, you guarantee the originality of your work, confirm that you hold all the copyrights to this work, and confirm that your work does not breach any copyrights held by any other parties. You additionally agree to indemnify SGAC in the case of any copyright claims against your submitted piece of work by any other parties.

You agree that SGAC reserves the exclusive right to determine the works which are displayed on its platforms. SGAC shall also be the sole determiner of the amount of time a work shall be displayed.

Liability

1. Organisers shall not be responsible in the event that SGC 2026 and/or IAC 2026 is cancelled. 
2. Organisers shall not be responsible in the event that the award winner fails to attend SGC 2026 and/or IAC 2026 or is unable to under extenuating circumstances; in such a case the award offer shall become void.
3. Organisers shall not be responsible in the event that the award winner cannot obtain any necessary travel documents (visas etc). If such required documents are not obtained prior to planned travel, the award shall become void.
4. The award is non-transferable and not valid for another event or individual.
5. Following the Reimbursement Guidelines, in the event that event or travel cannot take place due to unforeseeable circumstances (force majeure), including but not limited to illness, death, or weather, the Scholarship Holder will be responsible to try to recover costs through any available travel insurance or trip cancellation insurance. SGAC may reimburse the remaining amount not covered by insurance.

Schedule

Contact

For any questions, please refer to SGAC Scholarships Team ([email protected]).