OFFICIAL RULES
Artistcloseup Times Square Open Call
Last Updated: June 2026
These Official Rules apply to the Artistcloseup Times Square Open Call (“Open Call”). By submitting an entry, participants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and by all decisions made by Artistcloseup.
1. Organizer
The Artistcloseup Times Square Open Call is organized and administered by Artistcloseup (“Organizer,” “Artistcloseup,” “we,” “us,” or “our”).
Questions about the Open Call may be directed to:
2. Eligibility
The Open Call is open to visual artists worldwide.
Participants must be at least 18 years old at the time of entry.
Artists from any country may apply. Artists do not need to live in the United States and do not need to travel to New York to participate or be selected.
The Organizer reserves the right to determine eligibility and suitability of all submitted works.
3. Eligible Artwork
Artists may submit visual artwork, including but not limited to:
Painting
Photography
Digital art
Illustration
Drawing
Mixed media
Collage
Printmaking
AI-assisted artwork, if disclosed
Other screen-ready visual art forms
Artwork must be suitable for public display on a digital billboard.
The Organizer may reject or disqualify any artwork that, in its sole judgment, is unsuitable for public presentation, technically unsuitable, unlawful, offensive, defamatory, hateful, misleading, or infringing on third-party rights.
4. Entry Period
Submissions close on July 6, 2026.
Winners are scheduled to be announced on July 15, 2026.
Artistcloseup reserves the right to close submissions earlier if review capacity is reached, or to extend, suspend, modify, postpone, or cancel the Open Call if necessary.
5. How to Enter
To complete an entry, participants must:
Complete the entry form.
Pay the $49 USD entry fee.
Upload one artwork after payment.
Submit all required artist and artwork information.
An entry is only complete once both payment and artwork upload have been received.
Incomplete entries, failed payments, missing artwork uploads, or entries containing inaccurate information may be rejected or disqualified.
6. Entry Fee
The entry fee is $49 USD per submission.
Each submitted artwork requires a separate entry and separate entry fee.
Payment of the entry fee enters the artwork into juried review. Payment does not guarantee selection as a winner, billboard participant, interviewee, or featured artist.
Entry fees are non-refundable, including if an entry is not selected, except where required by law or if the Open Call is cancelled without awarding prizes.
7. Submission Requirements
Participants may be asked to provide:
Artist name
Email address
Instagram username
Country of residence
Artwork title
Artwork image
Artist statement or artwork description
Any other information requested through the submission form
Participants are responsible for ensuring that all submitted information is accurate and complete.
Artist names, artwork titles, countries of residence, and Instagram usernames may be used exactly as submitted.
8. Artwork File Requirements
For initial submission, artwork should preferably be uploaded in square format, with a minimum size of 1080 × 1080 px, in JPG or PNG format.
If selected, winners may be asked to provide a higher-resolution production file or an alternative file format suitable for billboard production.
If a selected artist cannot provide a suitable production file within the requested timeframe, Artistcloseup may disqualify the selected artwork and choose an alternate artist.
9. Artwork Ownership
Artists retain ownership and copyright of their submitted artwork.
By entering, each participant represents and warrants that:
The submitted artwork is original to the participant, or the participant has all necessary rights and permissions to submit it.
The participant has the legal right to grant Artistcloseup the permissions described in these Official Rules.
The artwork does not infringe, misappropriate, or violate any copyright, trademark, publicity right, privacy right, moral right, or other third-party right.
The artwork does not contain unlawful, defamatory, hateful, offensive, or misleading content.
Artistcloseup may disqualify any entry that violates these requirements.
10. License Granted to Artistcloseup
Artists retain full ownership of their artwork.
By submitting an entry, participants grant Artistcloseup a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, display, publish, crop, resize, format, adapt, and distribute the submitted artwork, artist name, artwork title, Instagram username, country of residence, and submitted materials for purposes related to the Open Call, including:
Reviewing and administering the Open Call
Producing the Times Square billboard feature for selected winners
Publishing Open Call content on Artistcloseup websites
Publishing winner announcements
Publishing artist interviews
Creating promotional, editorial, marketing, and social media content
Archival use related to the Open Call and Artistcloseup activities
This license does not transfer ownership of the artwork to Artistcloseup.
Artistcloseup may make reasonable formatting, cropping, resizing, or design adjustments to prepare selected artwork for billboard display, social media, web publication, documentation, or promotional materials.
11. AI-Assisted Artwork
AI-assisted artwork may be submitted if it is clearly disclosed.
Participants submitting AI-assisted artwork are responsible for ensuring that they have the necessary rights to submit and license the work, and that the work does not infringe third-party rights.
Artistcloseup reserves the right to reject or disqualify AI-assisted artwork if the rights, authorship, originality, or suitability of the work are unclear.
12. Selection Process
Three winners will be selected by the Artistcloseup editorial team.
Selection may be based on factors including, but not limited to:
Artistic quality
Originality
Visual impact
Presentation
Suitability for a Times Square billboard display
Overall strength of the submitted work
All decisions made by Artistcloseup are final.
No correspondence regarding selection decisions will be entered into.
13. Winner Notification
Winners are scheduled to be announced on July 15, 2026.
Selected artists may be contacted by email and/or other contact information submitted with the entry.
Selected artists must respond to Artistcloseup communications within seven calendar days of notification.
Selected artists may be required to provide:
High-resolution artwork files
Final artist attribution details
Instagram username confirmation
Artist biography or statement
Interview responses
Additional production or publicity materials
Failure to respond within the required period, failure to provide requested materials, or failure to meet production requirements may result in forfeiture of the award and selection of an alternate artist.
14. Winner Package
Each selected artist will receive a feature package that may include:
A dedicated Times Square digital billboard feature
An individual billboard presentation featuring only the selected artist’s artwork
Artist name displayed on the billboard design
Instagram username displayed on the billboard design
Professional photo documentation from Times Square
Professional video documentation from Times Square
A published artist interview on Artistcloseup
A billboard announcement feature on the Artistcloseup website
A social media feature across Artistcloseup channels
Prize components have no cash alternative and are non-transferable.
Artistcloseup may modify prize components if circumstances beyond its reasonable control require reasonable changes.
15. Times Square Display
Artistcloseup intends to provide each selected artist with an individual digital billboard presentation in Times Square, New York.
The planned billboard location is:
1560 Broadway, New York, NY 10036
Between 46th and 47th Street, above the Pelé store
Each winner is planned to receive:
A dedicated individual billboard presentation
A 24-hour campaign duration
15 seconds of display time every hour
A minimum of 22 scheduled billboard plays
Artist name and Instagram handle displayed with the artwork
The artwork will not be presented as part of a shared collage.
Billboard schedules, locations, timing, operators, display conditions, technical specifications, and presentation formats may vary. The display remains subject to venue availability, technical limitations, weather conditions, operational requirements, third-party billboard providers, and other circumstances beyond Artistcloseup’s reasonable control.
Artistcloseup will make reasonable efforts to deliver the Times Square feature substantially as described, but may make reasonable adjustments where necessary.
16. Billboard Approval and Technical Suitability
Final billboard artwork, design, and presentation are subject to approval by Artistcloseup and any relevant billboard operator, venue, or third-party service provider.
If a selected artwork cannot be displayed due to technical, legal, content, operator, or venue requirements, the selected artist may be asked to provide a suitable alternative artwork by a required deadline.
If the selected artist cannot provide a suitable alternative, Artistcloseup may select an alternate winner.
17. Documentation
Artistcloseup will make reasonable efforts to provide professional photo and video documentation of each winner’s Times Square billboard feature.
Documentation may vary depending on weather, lighting, crowd conditions, technical factors, camera access, billboard scheduling, and third-party limitations.
Artistcloseup does not guarantee specific photo angles, quantities, formats, production styles, posting dates, or media deliverables.
18. Interview and Promotional Features
Selected artists may receive a published artist interview and related promotional features on Artistcloseup platforms.
Artistcloseup may edit, format, publish, excerpt, or repurpose interview content for editorial, promotional, archival, and social media purposes.
Artistcloseup reserves the right to determine publication timing, format, layout, length, and presentation.
19. Publicity
By participating, entrants agree that Artistcloseup may use submitted artist information and materials for promotional, editorial, publicity, marketing, social media, and archival purposes related to the Open Call and Artistcloseup activities.
This may include use of:
Artist name
Artwork
Artwork title
Instagram username
Country of residence
Artist statement
Interview content
Submitted biography
Winner status
Billboard documentation
No additional compensation will be owed for these uses.
20. No Guarantee of Commercial Benefit
Participation in the Open Call or selection as a winner does not guarantee:
Artwork sales
Commissions
Gallery representation
Press coverage
Media opportunities
Social media growth
Career advancement
Financial gain
Any specific commercial result
Artistcloseup makes no representation or guarantee regarding specific outcomes resulting from participation or selection.
21. Disqualification
Artistcloseup reserves the right to reject, remove, or disqualify any entry or participant that:
Violates these Official Rules
Provides false, incomplete, or misleading information
Fails to complete payment or artwork upload
Fails to respond to required communications
Fails to provide suitable production files
Submits artwork that infringes third-party rights
Submits unlawful, offensive, hateful, defamatory, or inappropriate content
Attempts to manipulate, disrupt, or abuse the entry process
Acts in a way that may harm Artistcloseup, the Open Call, other participants, or third-party providers
Disqualification may occur at any stage of the Open Call.
22. Third-Party Platforms and Providers
The Times Square billboard display, payment processing, website hosting, email delivery, social media platforms, and related services may involve third-party providers.
Artistcloseup is not responsible for technical failures, service interruptions, payment platform issues, delivery failures, display interruptions, account restrictions, social media platform decisions, or other actions or omissions of third-party providers.
The Open Call is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Instagram, Meta, the billboard operator, the venue, Pelé, or any other third-party brand unless expressly stated by Artistcloseup.
23. Taxes and Expenses
No cash prize is awarded.
Any taxes, duties, fees, costs, or expenses arising from participation, selection, publicity, or receipt of any benefit are the sole responsibility of the participant, unless otherwise required by law.
Travel to New York is not required and is not included.
24. Limitation of Liability
To the fullest extent permitted by law, Artistcloseup, its owners, employees, contractors, affiliates, partners, service providers, and representatives shall not be liable for:
Technical failures
Website interruptions
Lost, delayed, incomplete, or corrupted submissions
Payment processing errors
Email delivery failures
Third-party service interruptions
Billboard operator decisions
Display delays, changes, or interruptions
Weather conditions
Venue restrictions
Event cancellations or postponements
Travel expenses
Lost profits
Loss of opportunity
Indirect, incidental, consequential, or special damages
Participation is at the entrant’s own risk.
Nothing in these Official Rules excludes liability where such exclusion is not permitted by law.
25. Modification, Suspension, or Cancellation
Artistcloseup reserves the right to modify, suspend, postpone, or cancel the Open Call if circumstances beyond its reasonable control make administration, judging, promotion, production, or display impractical, unsafe, unlawful, or impossible.
Such circumstances may include, but are not limited to:
Technical failures
Payment or website issues
Third-party provider issues
Billboard operator issues
Venue restrictions
Weather conditions
Public safety concerns
Legal or regulatory issues
Force majeure events
If the Open Call is cancelled without awarding prizes, Artistcloseup may issue refunds or provide another remedy where required by law or at its discretion.
Artistcloseup may substitute equivalent or comparable benefits if necessary.
26. Privacy
Personal information collected during the submission process will be used to administer the Open Call, communicate with participants, review entries, process payments, announce winners, publish features, and share Artistcloseup opportunities.
Information will be handled in accordance with the Artistcloseup Privacy Policy.
Participants should review the Privacy Policy before submitting.
27. Acceptance of Rules
By submitting an entry, participants acknowledge that they have read, understood, and agreed to these Official Rules and any related terms, conditions, and policies referenced by Artistcloseup.
Submission of an entry confirms acceptance of these Official Rules.
28. Contact
Questions regarding the Artistcloseup Times Square Open Call may be directed to:
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