2022 marks the inaugural Trish Thompson Memorial Emerging Artist Program at IMAGES In partnership with Daytona State College! Our goal is to encourage Emerging Artists to participate in the world of outdoor festivals by guiding them through the application process and the logistics of a festival at no cost to them. This program is dedicated in memory of artist and educator, Trish Thompson.

“The Daytona State Studio Art Department is super excited to start this new relationship with ACA and IMAGES Festival of the Arts,” said Trent Berning, Chair, Mike Curb College of Music, Entertainment and Art. “This emerging artist program is such a wonderful opportunity for our up-and-coming student artists. IMAGES has offered a very generous package for the participants and has created an important hands-on learning environment that will teach students how to support themselves as studio artists.”

Students experience the same juried application process as Festival Artists and three Trish Thompson Emerging Artist Awards will be selected by the judges. Each selected artist will receive a fully outfitted tent where they can sell their work at IMAGES, attend a workshop with a Festival Artist to learn industry tips and real-world applications of the outdoor festival world, showcase their talent to the 50,000+ attendees of the Festival, and vie for the $1,500 Emerging Artist Award! Plan to visit these talented students at their booths, learn more about their work, and support the next generation of artists!