YoungArts

YoungArts is the only national organization that champions artists throughout their lifetimes and across all art forms, fueling the ongoing vitality of the arts nationwide. Building on 45 years of impact, YoungArts helps artists develop their creative practices, build sustainable careers, and connect with opportunities and communities that support them at every stage.

Based in Miami, YoungArts begins this lifelong investment through its national competition, which recognizes emerging artists ages 15–18 in the visual, literary, design, and performing arts. For many young people, applying to YoungArts is the first time they assert, “I am an artist.”

Each year, thousands of talented young artists from across the country apply to the competition. Winners receive financial awards, mentorship, professional development opportunities, and lifelong access to a network of artists, arts leaders, and cultural institutions. The highest-scoring award winners are invited to Miami for our signature program National YoungArts Week, an intensive program of workshops, master classes, performances, exhibitions, and interdisciplinary collaboration. 

Through an interdisciplinary and intergenerational community of more than 24,000 artists, and partnerships with hundreds of esteemed cultural organizations nationwide, YoungArts creates opportunities for artists to learn, collaborate, and advance their careers. While serving artists across the United States, YoungArts remains proudly rooted in Miami, where its national headquarters contributes to the city's vibrant cultural landscape and hosts programs that connect local audiences with extraordinary artists.