The whole process
Entering has two parts you do yourself, and three that happen on FiKVA's side. Your artworks are in the competition once the entry fee is paid.
- Fill in the entry form youYour details, your artworks with one image each, a final review.
- Submit and pay the entry fee youCard, Bancontact or PayPal. The payment link is also emailed to you, so you can pay later.
- Review FiKVAAfter the open call closes, FiKVA checks each paid entry against the open call conditions and activates it for the jury.
- Jury voting JuryEvery juror scores every activated artwork from 0 to 10. The ranking is the average of all scores.
- Finalists and winners FiKVAThe best-ranked artworks become finalists; the top of the ranking are the winners. Both are published on fikva.art.
Before you start
Have these ready and the form takes a few minutes. Everything you type is kept in your browser tab if the page reloads, but images have to be chosen again.
- You are 18 or older. The form checks your date of birth.
- One image per artwork — JPG, PNG, GIF or WEBP, up to about 4 MB each. A straight, well-lit photo of the finished work, without a frame or watermark, is what the jury will see.
- For each artwork: title, year it was made (the form tells you which years are allowed), technique, measurements and its sale price.
- Optionally, a short artist statement per artwork: at most 100 words.
- A way to pay: credit or debit card, Bancontact, or PayPal.
- A discount code, if FiKVA gave you one.
The entry fee, the maximum number of artworks, the allowed years and the deadline differ per edition. The form shows the current values in the line at the very top, so trust the form over any figure quoted elsewhere. Open More about entering for the details.
The form at a glance
The form has three steps: About you, Your artworks and Review & pay. The header shows where you are. Continue checks the current step only; if something is missing, a red box lists the fields, and each name in that box is a link that jumps to the field.
You can go back at any time: use Back, or click a completed step in the header. Nothing is sent until you press Submit entry on the last step.
The bar at the bottom follows you down the page. It always shows how many artworks you have added, the fee so far and which step you are on.
Step 1 · About you
These details go on your entry and on the invoice for the fee. All fields are required.
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| First Name, Last Name | Your name as you want it shown with your work. |
| Email Address | The address FiKVA writes to: the payment link, your receipt and any news about your entry all go here. Check the spelling before you continue. |
| Date of birth | Day, month, year, in the format DD-MM-YYYY, or pick it with the calendar icon. You must be at least 18. |
| Address | Street and number. Add a second line if you need one. |
| Country | Start typing and pick your country from the list. It has to be chosen from the list, not just typed. |
| State / region | Your province, state or region. |
| City, Postcode | As on your post. |
Step 2 · Your artworks
Each artwork has its own block with an image on the left and its details on the right. The form starts with one block. Use Add Artwork for the next one; the button shows how many you have used of the maximum. Extra artworks can be removed with Remove artwork.
The image
Click the dotted box, or drag the file onto it. The picture appears in the box with the file name and size; click it again to replace it. If a file is refused, the box says why: not one of the accepted formats, or over the size limit.
The details
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Title | The title of the work. Required. |
| Year of production | The year the work was made. The label shows the years this edition accepts, for example (2024–2026); other years are refused. Required. |
| Technique | Medium and support, for example Oil on canvas, Charcoal on paper, Bronze. Required. |
| Measurements | Height × width (× depth) with the unit, for example 60 × 80 cm. Required. |
| Price | The sale price of the work in euros, numbers only. The form formats it for you. Required. |
| Artist Statement | Optional. Up to 100 words about this work: what it is, how it was made, what matters in it. |
Fill in every field of an artwork before adding the next one. The form checks all artworks at once when you press Continue, and the red box then tells you exactly which artwork and which field still needs attention.
Images are not kept if the page reloads or you come back later. Your text is restored, but you will be asked to choose the files again.
Step 3 · Review & pay
The last step reads back everything you entered. Each block has a Change link that takes you to the right step; when you come back, your review is still there.
Discount code
If you have one, type it in Discount code (optional) and press Apply code. A green ✓ Code applied confirms it, and the total shows the discount and the amount left to pay. If the code cannot be used, the form says why, for example because it has expired or is not valid for this edition. Without a code, leave the field empty.
The total
Entry fee is the sum of the fees of your artworks: the first artwork costs one amount, each additional one a smaller amount. The exact figure is shown again on the payment page before you pay anything.
The two checkboxes
- I have read and agree to the Open Call, Disclaimer and Privacy Policy — required. The links open the documents. Without this box the entry cannot be submitted, and the form tells you so under the box.
- Keep me posted about FiKVA exhibitions and open calls — optional newsletter.
Submit
Press Submit entry. The button shows the upload progress while your images are sent; with several large images this can take a little while on a slow connection. Keep the tab open until the confirmation appears.
After you submit
You see Your entry has been saved with your entry number. Note the number: it is the reference for anything you ask FiKVA about this entry.
At the same moment an email arrives with the subject Your FiKVA entry #… is saved — complete the payment to enter. It contains the same payment link under a Pay the entry fee button. If you do not pay right away, a reminder follows about a day later.
Your artworks are saved, but they are not in the competition until the entry fee is paid. Nothing is charged until you pay, and the link keeps working, so you can come back to it later.
If one of your files could not be used, the confirmation says so, and the payment page lists exactly which artworks were received. Write to info@fikva.art with your entry number if something is missing.
Paying the entry fee
The payment page lists your artworks with the fee for each, the total, and the payment methods.
- Check the artworks and the total.
- Choose Credit / Debit Card, Bancontact or PayPal.
- Tick I have read and agree to the website terms and conditions.
- Press Pay for order and follow your bank's or PayPal's screens.
When the payment goes through, you receive a receipt email (Completed order) and your entry is in the competition. There is nothing else to do.
Nothing has been charged. Open the link from your email again and try another method. The entry stays saved.
Review, jury, finalists and winners
Review by FiKVA
When the open call closes, FiKVA goes through the paid entries and checks them against the open call conditions: the artwork, the image, the details. Entries that meet them are activated for the jury. If something needs clarifying, FiKVA contacts you at the email address on your entry.
Jury voting
Each member of the jury sees every activated artwork, with its image, title, technique and your name, and gives it a score from 0 to 10. Jurors score independently and cannot see each other's scores. An artwork's result is the average of all jurors' scores.
Finalists
The highest-ranked artworks become the finalists. How many there are is decided per edition. The finalists are published on fikva.art, listed alphabetically by title, so the list itself does not reveal the ranking.
Winners
The winners are the top of the ranking, published on fikva.art in ranking order. Finished editions keep their published order: results do not change afterwards.
Announcements are made on fikva.art and through the newsletter. Ticking the newsletter box on the form is the easiest way not to miss them.
Questions & problems
The page says "Registration opens soon" or "Registration closed"
The open call has a start and an end. Before the start, the page shows a countdown; after the end, it says the call is closed. Entries are only possible in between. The dates are on the open call page on fikva.art.
"You must be at least 18 years old"
Check the date: the form expects day-month-year (DD-MM-YYYY). Only artists of 18 and over can enter.
"Type a year between … and …"
This edition accepts artworks made in the years shown in the field label. Works from other years cannot be entered in this edition.
My image is refused: "The file is too large" or "is not a JPG, PNG, GIF or WEBP image"
Save the photo as JPG at a size under the limit shown in the box (around 4 MB), and make sure it is an image file and not a PDF or a document. A photo of 2000–3000 pixels on the long side, saved as JPG at good quality, is usually well under the limit and more than enough for the jury.
"You have exceeded the maximum word limit of 100 words"
The artist statement is limited to 100 words per artwork. Shorten it, or leave it out: it is optional.
"You must accept the terms and conditions"
Tick the first checkbox on the review step, I have read and agree to the Open Call, Disclaimer and Privacy Policy. The newsletter box is optional and does not affect this.
"This code cannot be used"
The message above the field says why: the code may have expired, be used up, or be meant for another edition or another email address. Without a code, clear the field and continue; the full fee applies.
I came back to the form and my details were already there
The form keeps your typing in this browser tab so you can finish later. A notice at the top says so; use its dismiss button if you want to start fresh. Images are not kept and have to be chosen again.
I closed the payment page before paying
Open the email Your FiKVA entry #… is saved and press Pay the entry fee. The link works until you pay. If you cannot find the email, check the spam folder, then write to info@fikva.art with your name and the entry number if you have it.
I submitted twice by mistake
Submitting the same entry again within a short time does not create a second entry; you get the same payment link. If you made two different entries and only want one, pay only the one you want to keep and write to info@fikva.art about the other.
I paid but did not get a receipt
Look for an email titled Completed order, including in spam. If it is not there within an hour, write to info@fikva.art with your entry number and the time of payment.
I want to change something after submitting
Details cannot be edited from the form once submitted. Write to info@fikva.art with your entry number and what should change. To add artworks, submit a new entry; it is priced on its own, starting again with the first-artwork fee.
"Request timeout" or a network error while submitting
The upload may still have completed on FiKVA's side. Check your email for Your FiKVA entry #… is saved before submitting again; if it has arrived, use its payment link. If not, try again on a steadier connection, with smaller image files if yours are close to the limit.