Deadline:
May 02, 2025
Location(s)
Online United States of America
Overview
Enter the most prestigious competition for creativity in graphic design, the Communication Arts Design Competition.
Details
Any design project printed, published or aired for the first time from May 2024 through May 2025 is eligible. Selected by a jury of leading design professionals, the winning entries will be distributed worldwide in the Communication Arts Design Annual, in print and digital editions, and on commarts.com, assuring important exposure to the creators of this outstanding work.
Design Competition Categories/Fees
These categories are judged by the Design jury and will appear in the Design Annual:
- Packaging: labels, shopping bags, audio/video/software packaging, etc.
- Trademarks: single trademark or logo
- Identity Guides: corporate identity manuals/style guides, brand strategy guides, etc.
- Integrated Branding Programs: comprehensive identity programs. May include trademarks, business papers, websites, etc.
- Business Papers: business papers for a single company
- For Profit Annual Reports: annual report for publicly-traded companies
- Non-Profit Annual Reports: annual report for nonprofit organizations
- Institutional Brochures: institutional/corporate/social responsibility/booklet or brochure
- Product/Service Brochures: product or service booklet or brochure
- Product Catalogs: includes product images, descriptions, specifications, price etc.
- School Catalogs: course catalog for colleges, universities or other educational outlets. Catalogs for art schools offering courses in visual communications belong in Self-Promotion
- Exhibition Catalogs: brochure listing works at an art exhibition or book published to accompany an exhibit.
- Miscellaneous Company Literature: conference literature, announcements, company invitation/greeting card, etc.
- Posters: posters for exhibitions, institutional, theaters, movies, etc.
- Editorial: consumer and trade magazines, newspapers, house organs/newsletters/association publications, etc.
- Books: covers and complete books
- Self-Promotion: promotion for design firms, printers, paper companies, art schools, illustrators and photographers
- Self-Promotion for Design Clubs: promotion/communication for art/design clubs
- Motion Graphics: program titles, event videos, animation, music videos, etc.
- Public Service: work produced for nonprofits, including zoos, museums, orchestras, ballet companies, etc.
- Environmental Graphics: signage, interiors, architectural graphics, exhibits, tradeshow booths, point-of-purchase displays, etc.
- Personal Announcements: personal invitations/greeting cards/birth announcements, etc.
- Calendars: calendars for sale or created for clients. Calendars created for self-promotion belong in Self-Promotion
- Menus: single and series of menus created for establishments serving food
- Miscellaneous: work not covered in previous categories
- Student Work: work created for school assignments
Opportunity is About
Eligibility
Candidates should be from:
Description of Ideal Candidate
How to Enter
All competition entries are processed through our online competition system.
Before you begin the process of entering a competition, please have the following information and materials ready. This will make the process go quickly:
- Your contact information for registration and notification.
- Title and basic credits for each project.
- Printed copies or digital files of work you want to submit. See below for file specs.
Please submit only one version of each entry (i.e.: do not send printed copies if you already uploaded digital files of the same entry). Entries can be submitted in the following formats:
- Print Entries: Must be unmounted and sent to our office by mail/courier. Do not tape series together. Send all multi-page projects—books, annual reports, etc.—in bound form. Any project over 18" x 24" must be submitted as digital images. If you enter a project in multiple categories and wish to submit printed samples, you must send an additional sample for each entry with the appropriate form attached. Trademarks must be centered on an 8-1/2" x 11" sheet. Place the company name and nature of the business under the mark.
- Digital Images: Must be RGB in JPG format with a maximum width of 1024 pixels and a maximum height of 768 pixels at 72 dpi. NO EXCEPTIONS. Digital images will be projected for the judges using an HD projector on a 6' x 4' screen.
- Video Entries: Must be in MOV, MP4 or MPG format, with a maximum file size of 1 GB. Include 4 seconds of black, no slates or bars, at the beginning of each video and 2 seconds at the end.
No entries will be returned. NO EXCEPTIONS. CA is not responsible for damage or loss of any entry. All entrants grant Communication Arts the right to reproduce work selected in the Design Competition on theCommunication Arts website and in materials used to promote the magazine, the competition and/or future related promotions.
Questions
If you have any other questions you can reach us by:
Email: competition@commarts.com
Phone: (650) 326-6040
Fax: (650) 326-1648
Dates
Deadline: May 02, 2025
Cost/funding for participants
Each winning entrant will receive a personalized Award of Excellence, milled from solid aluminum, and award certificates issued for firms, individuals and clients.
CA’s Award of Excellence is one of the most-coveted awards in the industry. If chosen, winning places you in the highest ranks of your profession.
Un-save Opportunity
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