Italthai Portrait Prize lets young artists showcase their portrait painting skills and have their artworks exhibited at River City Bangkok
First launched in 2020, Italthai Portrait Prize is Thailand’s first portrait painting competition, now returning for its 6th edition.
The competition gives families more things to do in Bangkok with kids while offering artists of all ages, including foreign residents living in Thailand, the chance to showcase their talent through portrait art.
If you or your child loves painting portraits, sketching faces or telling stories through art, you don’t need to be a professional artist to join the Italthai Portrait Prize 2026. The competition is open to everyone, from students and hobby artists to experienced painters.
One thing that makes this competition different is that the portraits must be created from real-life live sittings rather than painted from photographs.
But there’s still plenty of time to start planning your masterpiece, as applications are now open until 31 August.
Organised by Italthai Group, the Thai company behind hospitality brands and properties including Amari Hotels & Resorts and Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, together with River City Bangkok, this year’s competition comes with the theme “The Ordinary Extraordinary”.
The theme encourages artists to celebrate everyday people whose quiet acts of kindness, resilience and responsibility often go unnoticed, from hardworking parents and caregivers to the small moments of kindness we see in daily life.
And if your artwork is selected as a finalist, it will be displayed at the Italthai Portrait Prize 2026 exhibition at River City Bangkok from 25 November 2026–14 January 2027.
To apply, you can find submission guidelines and competition rules here.
What is the Italthai Portrait Prize?
Just before the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020, River City Bangkok launched the RCB Portrait Prize as Thailand’s first national portrait painting competition, with the aim of supporting and nurturing the country’s growing art community.
Then in 2023, River City Bangkok’s parent company, Italthai Group, became the competition’s main sponsor, leading to the new name, the Italthai Portrait Prize.
The competition is open to everyone, including professional artists, students, hobby painters and even foreign residents living in Thailand.
And if your artwork is selected as a finalist, it will also be displayed publicly at the Italthai Portrait Prize exhibition at River City Bangkok.
Awards and prizes
This year’s competition features four award categories with a total prize pool of B900,000, including:
- Portrait Prize – B500,000
- Packing Room Prize – B200,000
- People’s Choice Prize – B100,000
- Youth Prize – B100,000 for artists aged 16 and under
Unlike many art competitions where judges mainly come from the art world, the Italthai Portrait Prize brings together judges from Thailand’s media, business and cultural industries.
This year’s judging panel includes Valaithip Piriyawaraskul from Italthai Group, Tom Van Blarcom from Total Quality PR Thailand, Adulaya Hoontrakul from the Bangkok Art & Culture Centre (BACC), as well as Kirati Thepsoparn, founder of Vitamins Consulting & Research and Siri Sala Private Thai Villa.
One of the highlights for kids is the Youth Prize category, which is specially created for artists aged 16 and under.
Meanwhile, the Packing Room Prize is selected by River City Bangkok’s exhibition team and awarded to a piece that stands out behind the scenes during the exhibition preparation process.
Even if artists do not win the main jury prizes, finalists still have the chance to win the People’s Choice Prize, which is voted for by visitors attending the exhibition.
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How to enter the competition
You are invited to create a portrait painting inspired by this year’s theme, “The Ordinary Extraordinary”, which celebrates everyday people whose quiet acts of kindness, resilience and responsibility often go unnoticed in daily life.
Rather than focusing on celebrities or famous figures, the competition encourages you to find beauty and meaning in ordinary individuals, from hardworking parents and caregivers to the small moments of compassion we experience every day.
The portrait must be created from a live sitting, meaning artists should paint from a real person rather than copying from photographs or digital references.
You are free to use any artistic medium, so you can express your ideas however you like through your own creative style, including oil painting, acrylics, watercolour and mixed media.
You can submit your work via here.
Why families are excited about Italthai Portrait Prize
What makes this thing to do in Bangkok with kids especially meaningful is its focus on storytelling and human connection rather than fame or celebrity.
For young artists, it’s also a rare chance to enter a national art competition, showcase their creativity and potentially have their artwork exhibited publicly at River City Bangkok.
The competition encourages kids to observe people more closely, think about empathy and express emotions through portraiture.
Even for families simply visiting the exhibition, the artworks offer meaningful conversations about kindness, resilience and the people who quietly shape our everyday lives.
Key dates
Submission period: Until 31 August
Finalists announced: 16 October
Award ceremony: 24 November
Exhibition dates: 25 November–14 January 2027
