There are loads of painting competitions on offer every year and the hosts range from schools and colleges to community and arts centers to art galleries and museums. Locating the best painting contest to suit your style and genre can be a little tricky however. The following guide is geared towards providing you with the best help possible to meet your needs.

The foremost thing that you must keep in mind is to make safety your top priority. This requires vigilance as a shoppers as well as an education on save and smart approaches. It is essential to ensure that all contest providers as well as the resources you use in research are reputable and safe.

On that note, avoid competitions which have high cost entry fees as these may take advantage of the entrants. Being careful to check out the opportunities available and to only apply for those that are safe and high quality is crucial. To help you in this aspect there are tips on entering art competitions in many reference books for artists which may be found in libraries and book stores.

To follow are some of the possibilities for competitions and where you may find listings. One popular source is a magazine that is dedicated to the topic of art and painting. These often include listings of opportunities and competitions along with details on relevant websites for further information.

Remember that no matter which type of publication you select as a reference that you must carefully vet the information you find to be sure it is accurate and up to date. Typically the publication does not take responsibility for its listings so it is up to you the reader to vet and fact check. Knowing how to be a smart consumer is crucial no matter what kind of information or product you are seeking.

One other means of getting listings for art contests across the country and abroad is offered by the range of sources online. For instance you can find some art blogs that focus on providing a wide range of tools and content especially for full time artists. These are intended to provide guidance on competitions and opportunities and may include a range of relevant listings for art contests.

Another possibility is a website that is dedicated to providing resources for artists including classifieds, open commission opportunities and much more. This type of site is organized like a notice board and includes a great variety of listings. In fact there are some very well known artist sites that are intended to be a hub of information for artists around the world. These have become a go to source for those looking for contests.

Regardless of the resources you select, being a thorough researcher is key. It can also help to ask among your arts community via friends and family who are also painters. They might have some suggestions to offer about contests that focus on this medium. For anyone who is seeking an exciting opportunity to gain exposure a painting competition could be the solution. For further tips on this topic, you can find some reference books in book stores that are geared towards providing annual lists of contests for artists.