AAANZ Art Writing and Publishing Awards (AWAPAs) recognise the best in arts writing and research across Australia and New Zealand.
ENTRIES for the 2026 AWAPAs are NOW OPEN
The AWAPAs highlight the vitality of arts publishing in the region and acknowledges the contribution of both emerging and established scholars, curators and artists. The Awards play a pivotal role in promoting the importance of writing and publishing in disseminating knowledge and understanding of the visual arts, craft and design. They are the only prizes in the Australasia region to celebrate the publishing achievements writers make to the field.
AWAPAs categories include prizes for books, exhibition catalogues, artist-led publications, Indigenous Australian, Māori and Pacific art writing. The Awards are sponsored by a number of universities, art museums, associations, publishing bodies and individuals.
AWAPAs recognises:
- Originality and rigour of scholarship
- Contribution to knowledge in the area and impact on scholarly debate in the field
- Significance of the topic to the field and to adjacent disciplines
- Significance and originality of arts research
- Quality of the design and production values of the publication
- Ability to convey complex ideas to wider audiences
To enter a publication in the AWAPAs, entrants must be a AAANZ member. Staff affiliated with museums and galleries that have AAANZ organisational membership are also eligible to enter publications. AAANZ membership is complimentary for Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, Māori and Pacific entrants (please join on the membership page). Renew or join AAANZ Membership here.
The year of publication for all entries must be 2025 (except Best Artist Led, this category is open for published works from the previous four years).
Prize winners of each AWAPAs category are announced at the AAANZ 2026 conference | Haereka
The deadline for AWAPAs entries is Friday 28 August, 2026
- AWAPAs entries are open to Australian and New Zealand writers and publishers
- Australian and New Zealand writers published by an international publishing company are eligible to enter
- Entrants can be the author, editor or publisher
- Entrants can only be considered for one AWAPAs category
- Entrants must be a AAANZ member or staff affiliated with a museum or gallery that has AAANZ organisational membership
- Publication nominations for Best Writing by a Māori or Pasific may be entered in another AWAPAs category, however, the publication is only eligible to win one category
- Books, catalogues and articles must be published in 2025 to be eligible
- Entries for Best Artist Led Publication: Essay/Catalogue/Book are eligible if they have been published in the previous four years, 2021 ‒ 2025
- Best Artist Led Publication: Essay/Catalogue/Book can only be entered in the AWAPAs once
- Following completion of the online AWAPAs entry form, two copies of each publication are required to be posted to the AAANZ Business Manager for judging
- AAANZ reserves the right to reallocate the selected category
- All articles published in the 2025 issue of the ‘Australian and New Zealand Journal of Art’ will be automatically entered in the Best Scholarly Article category
- AAANZ reserves the right not to make an award in a category if it considers no award is merited, or to make a joint award
- The judges’ decisions are final and no correspondence will be entered into
How to enter
Fill in the nomination form here (if you are submitting multiple entries please use a separate form for each publication).
Following completion of the online AWAPAs entry form, two copies of each publication are required to be posted to the AAANZ Business Manager for judging. Postal details pop up after successful completion of the entry form.
For all enquiries please contact the AAANZ Business Manager
Prize Categories
$1,000 sponsored by Professor Terry Smith, FAHA, CIHA.
The AWAPAs Best Book prize is the only art historical book prize awarded annually in Australasia. It is designed to honour significant and original art historical scholarship from all periods of art history, while also acting as a benchmark for excellence in academic publishing.
Best Book is a monograph by a single author or multiple authors writing in collaboration.
$500 awarded in prize money. Sponsored by the Australian Institute of Art History.
The AWAPAs Best Anthology prize is awarded annually to the best collected edition of relevant writing on art, art theory and historical research.
These publications are often collections of essays by multiple authors compiled by one or more editors and include conference proceedings or editorial initiatives organised around a theme.
$500 awarded in prize money. Sponsored by the Australian Institute of Art History.
The AWAPAs Best Large Exhibition Catalogue prize honours originality and intellectual rigour, as well as excellence in the quality of the catalogue design, layout and reproduction of high-quality images. This prize is awarded annually and exhibition catalogues from (monographic surveys to broad thematic publications) issued by major Australian and New Zealand art museums, and those published by art institutions across the South Pacific (Oceania) are eligible.
Large exhibition catalogues have in excess of 160 pages as a guide.
$500 awarded in prize money. Sponsored by the Australian Institute of Art History.
The AWAPAs Best Medium Exhibition Catalogue prize recognises the wide range of publishing that takes place in the museum and gallery sector. Catalogues in this category should demonstrate intellectual rigour and scholarship together with excellence in design elements, lay-out and reproduction of high-quality images. Submissions from small to medium sized institutions are particularly encouraged.
Best Medium Exhibition Catalogue are between 80 and 160 pages as a guide.
$500 awarded in prize money. Sponsored by the University of Melbourne.
The AWAPAs Best Small Exhibition Catalogue prize is awarded annually for a smaller scale of art institutional catalogue publication. Small exhibition catalogues demonstrating the breadth possible within the category are particularly encouraged.
Best Small Exhibition Catalogue are less than 80 pages as a guide.
$500 sponsored by Power Institute, Foundation for Art and Visual Culture, The University of Sydney.
The AWAPAs Best Scholarly Article in the 'Australian and New Zealand Journal of Art' prize is awarded for the best article published in the biannual editions of the ANZJA for the preceding year (i.e. for 2026, articles published in volume 25, issues 1 & 2 will be entered).
$500 sponsored by Associate Professor Fiona Foley
Nur meaning spear point in Badtjala (Butchulla) recognises the best critical art writing by an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander in the form of an article, essay, or text excerpt from a publication.
$500 sponsored by Christchurch Art Gallery.
The AWAPAs Best Art Writing by a Māori or Pacific prize is awarded for the best art writing, whether in the form of a book, article or essay by a Māori or Pacific.
Book nominations for this category are also eligible to enter into another category.
$500 sponsored by Monash Art, Design & Architecture, Monash University.
The AWAPAs Best Artist Led Publication prize recognises writing by an individual or group of artists that responds to art, art theory and historical research through documentation and/or analysis.
Entries for this category are eligible if they have been published in the previous four years, 2021 ‒ 2025. They can only be entered once in the AWAPAs.
$1,000 sponsored by the University Art Museums Association.
The AWAPAs Best University Art Museums Exhibition Catalogue prize invites submissions from art museums on campus throughout the Australasian and South Pacific (Oceania) region. The award recognises an exhibition catalogue that demonstrates originality and intellectual rigour, as well as excellence in the quality of the catalogue design, layout and reproduction of high-quality images.
