Calling all illustrators! The Booooooom Illustration Awards have returned, and this year we’re going bigger than ever—submissions are officially open! There are 5 award categories to submit to: “Personal”, “Product & Packaging”, “Advertising & Promotional”, “Editorial”, “Student”. We have cash prizes up for grabs, goodies from some of our friends (tablets, consoles, free websites, digital tools), an elite panel of judges, editorial and social coverage, and the opportunity to be published in a special printed publication.
Our inaugural awards were a huge success (see all the winners here), thanks to all of you. We can’t wait to see what you all submit this year! Big thanks to our friends at Format for helping us bring this to life again! With their continued support, we’re able to keep building opportunities for our creative community and shining a light on so much incredible talent.
Format is the online portfolio builder for illustrators, designers, artists and photographers. Streamlined for the needs of professional creators, the platform offers over 90 themes with extensive design variables. Their new flex block tool allows users to drag and drop images, video, text, buttons, and more to create bespoke layouts. You can also sell your work commission free through the Format store. If you want to learn more about Format, check out their website here or start a 14-day free trial.
Everyone is welcome to submit one image to these awards for FREE. Members enjoy unlimited submissions and unlimited images for all award categories. If you want to submit more than one image or compete in multiple categories, consider becoming a member here!
This is a golden opportunity for your work to reach new eyes—and not just any eyes! For the first time ever we are welcoming a panel of distinguished guest judges including: James Jean (artist), Akiko Stehrenberger (artist/art director), Phil Chang (founder of C47), and Evan Pricco (founder of The Unibrow, former editor in chief at Juxtapoz).
All 5 winners—and 20 shortlisted illustrators—will be featured in our special Awards print publication, created exclusively to showcase your work. This zine won’t be for sale; instead, we will send it directly to people we admire (editors, art directors, tastemakers, you get the idea). Winners and runners-up will each receive a copy as well as editorial coverage on Booooooom and promotion across our social channels. We will also have a longlist of 100+ illustrators who will be promoted across our social channels.
For prizing this year, we’ve lined up some fantastic product sponsors. TourBox is joining us and providing their Elite Plus—the ultimate creative console for illustrators who want faster, smoother workflow control. Huion is contributing some of their most impressive tablets, including the Kamvas Pro 24 (4K). And True Grit Texture Supply is back again, providing 5 Everything Bundles (every product they offer, for the app of your choice) filled with brushes, actions, effects kits, textures, and more.
In addition to this, we’ve doubled the cash prize pool to $5000 USD and C47 Creative is adding an additional $2500 USD (for a total cash prize pool of $7500 USD!).
Format is also generously providing 3 “Lifetime Subscriptions” websites. To enter, complete a submission of any kind and opt-in to their newsletter.
It is FREE for anyone to submit 1 image to 1 award category.
Submit 10 Images to 1 Category
$15 (early bird) – Submit up to 10 images to 1 award category for consideration.
Submit Unlimited Images to all Categories (MEMBERS)
If you are currently a member, log in to enable the submit button unlimited submissions (unlimited images + unlimited categories). If you are not a member, you can learn about becoming a member here.
Deadline for submissions: 11:59PM PST November 7, 2025
Endless thanks to Format for backing our awards once again and helping us take things to the next level! We’re so grateful for their support, and for all our partners—we hope you’re as excited as we are.
Category Winners will receive:
- $7500 USD in cash prizes: 5 x $1500 USD prizes ($2500 USD generously provided by C47).
- TourBox Elite Plus
- True Grit Texture Supply Everything Bundle
- One of the following Huion products: Kamvas Pro 24 (4K), Kamvas 16 (Gen 3), Kamvas 13 (Gen 3), Inspiroy Dial 2
- Interview Feature in our Awards publication (receive 1 copy)
- Editorial coverage on Booooooom + promotion across social channels
- Editorial coverage in Format Magazine
20 Runners-Up (shortlist) will receive:
- Images published in our Awards publication (receive 1 copy)
- Editorial coverage on Booooooom + promotion across all social channels
It is FREE for anyone to submit 1 image to 1 award category.
Submit 10 Images to 1 Category
$15 (early bird) – Submit up to 10 images to 1 award category for consideration.
Submit Unlimited Images to all Categories (MEMBERS)
If you are currently a member, log in to enable the submit button unlimited submissions (unlimited images + unlimited categories). If you are not a member, you can learn about becoming a member here.
Deadline for submissions: 11:59PM PST November 7, 2025
James Jean is a multidisciplinary visual artist whose works explore imagination and reality through narrative-driven, layered compositions. His expressionistic, painterly approach to mark-making blends figuration with abstraction in works that are at once technically precise and gestural. Collaborations of note include work with Prada, Yohji Yamamoto, Guillermo Del Toro, and Darren Aronofsky.
Akiko Stehrenberger is a 29-time CLIO Award–winning movie poster artist and art director known for her versatility and concept-driven designs. She is also tall.
Phil Chang is the founder of C47, a creative and strategic solutions group primarily based in New York City (since 2017). Select partners/clients include: Netflix, Bottega Veneta, Riot Games, Arc’teryx, A24, Cash App, Grailed. Before establishing C47, Phil worked at Wieden+Kennedy New York and Apple.
Evan Pricco was the editor in chief of Juxtapoz Magazine from 2006—2024, and in 2025, founded The Unibrow, an arts, culture, design and fiction publication. He has curated over 20 shows internationally, including Juxtapoz x Superflat with Takashi Murakami and I’d Love To See You, a survey of Juxtapoz at 30 years. He has authored 15 books and continues to contribute to various publications and catalogs, including Playboy, Family Style, Beyond the Streets and more.
There are five award categories. Four of the categories are open to any illustrators or artists, worldwide, working in traditional and digital media. The student category is only for people who were enrolled in school (any school) when the work was created. Any works created in 2024 and 2025 are eligible. We are not accepting artworks created using generative AI (artificial intelligence) for any of the categories. Speculative, self-initiated, or otherwise unofficial projects where you were not hired by the client may only be submitted to the “Personal” award category.
1. PERSONAL
Self-directed illustrations created purely for the purpose of exploration and one’s own growth. This category is for any personal work which does not suit the other categories.
2. PRODUCT & PACKAGING
Illustrations created for physical or digital products including:
- T-shirt Designs
- Album Artwork
- Books
- Magazine Covers
- Totes
3. ADVERTISING & PROMOTIONAL
Illustrations created for commercial purposes or the promotion of anything. These may include:
- Film Posters
- Social media content
- Print ads
- Band Posters
- Event Flyers
4. EDITORIAL
Illustrations created for print or digital publications, to accompany and enhance editorial content such as:
- Newspapers
- Magazines
- Web Articles
- Guides
- Lists
5. STUDENT
This is a special category for people who are in the earliest stage of their career. It is open to anyone enrolled at any school and may include work which fits any of the other categories. Students may submit the same work to this category and other categories if they wish.
It is FREE for anyone to submit 1 image to 1 award category.
Submit 10 Images to 1 Category
$15 (early bird) – Submit up to 10 images to 1 award category for consideration.
Submit Unlimited Images to all Categories (MEMBERS)
If you are currently a member, log in to enable the submit button unlimited submissions (unlimited images + unlimited categories). If you are not a member, you can learn about becoming a member here.
Deadline for submissions: 11:59PM PST November 7, 2025
Call to Submit: “Tomorrow’s Talent 5” Book
We’re now accepting submissions to the fifth volume of our celebrated Tomorrow’s Talent book series.
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