The Bennett Prize Raises Its Grand Award to $75,000 as Artists Face a Tight Market
A major women’s painting prize is expanding its reach just as the art economy grows more precarious. The Bennett Prize, a biennial award for women painters working in figurative realism, has increased its grand prize from $50,000 to $75,000 for its fifth cycle. The move comes amid gallery closures, shrinking federal arts support, and collectors’ caution around major purchases.
Founded in 2018 by collectors Steven Alan Bennett and Dr. Elaine Melotti Schmidt, the prize was created to address a longstanding imbalance in recognition for women painters. Its call for entries is now open, with applications accepted from April 13, 2026, through September 19, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. MST. This cycle also raises the eligibility ceiling from $25,000 to $35,000, broadening the pool of artists who can apply.
The prize has become more than a cash award. Ten finalists will be included in a group exhibition at the Muskegon Museum of Art in Michigan in spring 2027, where the winner and runner-up will be announced. The runner-up Dr. Elaine Melotti Schmidt Prize remains at $10,000.
For artists who have already gone through the process, the prize’s value lies partly in visibility. Monica Ikegwu, a Baltimore-based painter and 2023 finalist, said the larger award could help an artist dealing with financial strain in the studio. Aleah Chapin, a Los Angeles-based painter whose work is in the Bennetts’ personal collection, said applying is itself a form of discipline: a way to practice being seen, and to practice rejection.
Ikegwu’s own experience underscores the prize’s reach. She entered in 2022 shortly after graduate school with a style her instructors had discouraged — figures outlined in black rather than softened into the background. Jurors responded to that very quality, and the touring exhibition brought her work to new audiences. The Muskegon Museum of Art later acquired two of her paintings.
Michelle Doll, who received an honorable mention in the first Bennett Prize competition in 2019, said the prize stands out because it invests in artists’ voices, not only their market value. That distinction has had measurable effects: past participants have gone on to win 72 additional awards and secure representation with nearly 30 galleries.
In a moment when many artists are being asked to do more with less, The Bennett Prize is positioning itself as both a financial boost and a public platform. Its latest increase suggests that recognition, access, and institutional visibility remain tightly linked — and still unevenly distributed.
