Global Canvas children’s art competition is an annual international art contest run by DSWF, to encourage creativity from young people, to display thought and concern for our planet’s environment and the incredible wildlife that inhabits it.
Set up in 2004 by DSWF’s founder, wildlife artist and conservationist David Shepherd, each year, the competition receives thoughtful and creative entries from all over the world, with an amazing array of interpretations of the year’s theme.
The 2025 Global Canvas competition is now open for entries. Find out more.
Visit the Global Canvas 2024 finalists gallery
Celebrating the creative talent and expression of young people on a global scale. Each year we are astounded at the level of creativity, detail and thought put into each and every piece, making our job of selecting the winners very difficult.
Inspiring the next generation of wildlife conservationists. Global Canvas is also an opportunity for young people to learn and explore environmental issues. Giving them a platform to convey their conservation message.
Creating a community of wildlife activists and artists. The passion for animals is clearly evident within the Global Canvas entries we have received to date. We are delighted to bring everyone together at our Virtual Awards Ceremony to celebrate everyone taking part.
Children and young people aged 16 and under are encouraged to enter Global Canvas. You can enter as an Individual or a Group.
Individuals and Groups are judged separately and categorised by age groups, so children of all ages are in with a chance of winning their age category. We announce the winner of 3rd, 2nd and 1st place in each of the age categories.
You can enter one of the following categories:
Global Canvas is completely free to enter. We accept online entries, where participants can enter images and videos of their artwork, along with their contact details so we can keep you up to date on the competition.
All artwork will then be reviewed by our judges and the winners will be announced in a Virtual Awards Ceremony.
The 2025 Global Canvas competition is now open and you can find full details here.
Below you can find some useful resources on creating artwork for Global Canvas including exclusive video masterclasses from previous Wildlife Artist of the Year finalists.
Created by Wildlife Artist of the Year finalists – our masterclasses have been designed exclusively for Global Canvas applicants. We will be publishing upcoming masterclasses, here.
We were delighted to receive a record-breaking number of entries, and the creativity and innovation on display was truly exceptional.
After a comprehensive judging process, winners were announced at our live Awards Ceremony which you can watch here.
Young wildlife artists between the ages of 15 and 19 are invited to enter the ‘Youth Exclusive’ category in our Wildlife Artist of the Year competition. Click the button to find out more.
