Las Vegas 2026
Open to the Pubic
Free Admission & Parking
Event: Meet the Artists Reception
Date: May 29th, 2026
Place:
Charleston Heights Arts Center
800 Bush St., Las Vegas, NV 89041

The 26th Annual Celebrating Life! Free Juried Art Competition Las Vegas 2026 was held on Friday, May 29th.

The reception was at the Charleston Heights Arts Center Ballroom.

The competition attracted the finest senior artists from five Southern Nevada Counties: Clark, Esmeralda, Lincoln, Mineral and Nye.

The event was sponsored by the City of Las Vegas and Las Vegas Arts Commission.

The turnout was exceptional and the energy was lively.
Informally, they asked by a show of hands how many artists were in attendance and only a third raised their hands – confirmation that the event was well received by the public.

There were twice as many in the audience this year as last – it was crowded.

Light refreshment and appetizers were on hand to keep the audience from flagging.
The audience temperament was spontaneous and effusive with a number of crowd favorites and perfunctory gasps of glee.

By the images, you can see there was lots to see and talent plentiful.

Cash prizes for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and honorable mention were awarded…

…in each of six categories: acrylic/oil, ceramics, drawing/pastel, mixed media, photography, sculpture and watercolor/gauche.

Festivities started late due to the continued arrival of so many guests.

Fortunately, the finalists were asked to sit near the podium. This allowed for a quick turnaround of twenty-four awards in six categories…

…as finalists’ works were displayed on a large screen as they received their award.

The prize for best of show was $500.

Artist Lolita Develay was the guest juror for the event.

Las Vegas Mayor Pro Tem City Councilman Brian Knudsen was the keynote speaker and he kept it simple and brief.

The exhibition runs through September 10th, 2026 at the Charleston Heights Art Center.
Thanks for visiting. 😊
Be sure to check out our website.