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The 2026 Erarta Prize Exhibition Featuring the Nominees for the Annual Contemporary Art Prize Opens at Erarta Museum
From 6 February through 7 June, Erarta’s Grand Hall is hosting the exhibition of artworks by the 40 Erarta Prize nominees selected by the museum’s team following an open call for entries. The Erarta Prize is the only art prize awarded through a public vote rather than by a board of experts. The show features paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, photographs, installations, as well as other contemporary art media.
This year sees the fourth edition of the Erarta Prize. Inaugurated in 2023, the project became a mainstay of both the local cultural scene and the Russian contemporary art in general. The enthusiastic feedback received from everyone involved – artists and viewers alike – keeps the Erarta Prize going. The prize amount grows as the project evolves: in 2026, the total prize value for the artists equals 3.5 million rubles. It will be distributed among the 40 nominees according to the viewers’ vote.
The first voting round is in progress right now and will last through 20 April. It will determine the 10 shortlisted artists whose works will compete in the second round scheduled to run from 21 April through 3 June. Every vote matters – your support can help any artist achieve a higher ranking, win a bigger prize, and ultimately compete for the Grand Prix of 500,000 rubles.
The winners of the 2026 Erarta Prize will be announced at the closing awards ceremony on 4 June. Stay tuned for more important news!
To learn more about the voting and prize awarding procedure, visit the guidelines for the judging viewers and voting procedure pages.
For more details and press accreditation, please email Erarta Museum’s Communications Department at pr@erarta.com.
Below are some downloadable files:
Erarta Museum Announces the 2026 Erarta Prize Longlist
Having reviewed all entries for the Prize, the museum unveiled its longlist comprising 40 artists. Their works will be displayed at a special exhibition staged to determine the winners through a public viewer vote. In 2026, the total prize value will amount to 3.5 million rubles and will be distributed among the nominees according to the viewers’ choice.
From 6 February through 7 June 2026, Erarta’s Grand Hall will host an exhibition showcasing the creations by our contemporaries selected by the museum out of the entire pool of works submitted by the artists competing for the Prize. The Erarta Prize is the only contemporary art prize awarded through a public vote rather than by a board of experts. This premise is consistent with Erarta’s core philosophy: art is being created by the artist, but it is the viewers’ perception that makes it truly powerful.
The exhibition will feature paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, photographs, video and multimedia art, installations, as well as other contemporary art media.
The following artists have been nominated for the 2026 Erarta Prize:
| Anna Berzina | Alexander Kulikov (Peshe) | Anna Sosenskaya |
| Masha Bogoraz | Nikolai, Grigoriy & Anastasia-Ksenia Lysak | Sasha Suvorova |
| Oleg Vecher | Tatyana Mazok | Uspekh Provalov |
| Aleksey Golovin | Olga Melnikova | Fyodor Hiroshige & Nestor Engelke |
| Anastasia Golubeva | Eduard Mishkin | Ilya Shanin |
| Irina Denisova (Irisa Didrisa) | Viktor Mosielev | Anelia Sharifullina (OUR RUG) |
| Alyona Zhamozdik | Oksana Mylnikova | Andrey Shatilov |
| Ksyusha Kabachek | Anastasia Nesterova | Elena Shulga |
| Lev Kozhin | Irina Pyankova | Alex Ko |
| Maxim Korolkov | Yulia Saltykova | Liza DANDY |
| Evgeniy Kravtsov | Maria Safronova | Dima ПЖ |
| Marina Kudrina | Kirill Svityashchuk | DIMITRIEV & YANAK |
| Anton Kuznetsov | Vladimir Semenskiy | |
| Elena Kulik | Aleksey Sergeyev |
In 2026, every viewer will have one vote for each of the two voting rounds. All active Erarta Members and Ticket holders from various parts of Russia who will not be able to travel to St. Petersburg during the period of the 2026 Erarta Prize exhibition will have the option to vote in absentia: for each of the voting rounds, every active Member and Ticket holder will have one vote that can be cast in favour of the artwork of their choice. The viewers judging the 2026 Erarta Prize will enjoy a new opportunity: not only will they have their say in the prize money distribution, but can also purchase their favourite artwork, lending additional support to its creator. All nominated exhibits that are sold prior to the awarding of the Prize will remain on display for the duration of the show and will be transferred to their new owners only after the project’s results are announced.
The artists’ exact ranking will be determined by the number of votes received by each particular artwork. In the second round, the number of votes will be reset to zero, and voting will start over. The voting procedure will be fair and transparent. The number of viewer votes given to each artwork will be displayed on a special screen installed in the exhibition space and can be tracked in real time.
Below are some downloadable files:
Erarta Museum Announces an Open Call for the 2026 Erarta Prize
Entries must be submitted through the online form from 16 September through 19 October 2025. The total 2026 Erarta Prize value of 3.5 million rubles will be distributed among the nominees according to the viewers’ vote.
The Erarta Prize is the first annual contemporary art prize judged by the viewers rather than by a board of experts. This premise is consistent with Erarta’s core philosophy: art is being created by the artist, but it is the viewers’ perception that makes it truly powerful.
Launched in 2023, the Erarta Prize was justly awarded the title of Project of the Year in the Arts Category by the Delovoy Peterburg daily business newspaper. The past Erarta Prize nominees continue to collaborate with the museum: some of their works were added to Erarta’s permanent collection, and several artists were invited by the Curatorial Team to have their solo exhibitions at Erarta, more than a dozen of which have been staged already.
For the Prize’s fourth edition in 2026, Erarta will once again encourage the viewers to select their favourite artwork according to their own choices and preferences. The 2026 Erarta Prize exhibition will be held from 6 February through 7 June 2026 at Erarta’s Grand Hall and will showcase the creations by our contemporaries selected by the museum out of the entire pool of works submitted by the contesting artists. Erarta Museum will curate the contestants’ exhibition (select the exhibits and stage the actual show), but will neither take part in determining the winners nor invite other experts from the professional community to do so. A total of 40 nominees will compete for the 2026 Erarta Prize. Each of them will receive a guaranteed reward that will depend on their exact ranking. The voting will take place in two rounds. Additional details of the voting procedure, the 2026 prize money distribution, and other new features can be found.
Erarta Museum invites everyone to take an active part in staging the exhibition and determining the winners of the 2026 Erarta Prize. This is going to be unmissable!
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Publication-quality images can be downloaded here.
