Fourth Plinth Schools Award

About the competition

The Fourth Plinth Schools Awards provided an opportunity for students to design an artwork inspired by the contemporary art commissions, past and present, for the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square.

The deadline for entries has now passed. Thanks so much to schools for all their hard work - we received an incredible 700+ entries this year.

View them all in our online gallery.

We will be in touch in February to let schools know which artworks have been shortlisted from each London borough.

Please note: the winning entries will not be released by the Mayor’s Office for display on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square.

Prizes

  • The winning artwork from each London borough will feature in an official public exhibition at City Hall.
  • Borough winners prize to be confirmed.
  • Second and third prize will also be awarded.

All winning students, their parent(s)/guardian(s) and a representative from their school will be invited to attend the awards ceremony, presented by Elmgreen & Dragset, at City Hall.

Timescales for the Schools Award competition

  • Monday 17 October 2011 - Schools Awards open for submissions
  • Friday 16 December 2011 - Deadline for submissions
  • February 2012 - Announcement of shortlist
  • March/April 2012 - Prize-giving ceremony and launch of exhibition at City Hall

Who are the Judges?

Elmgreen & Dragset

Michael Elmgreen & Ingar Dragset are from Denmark and Norway, respectively and have been working together since 1997. Read more...

The judges are looking for outstanding works of art of the highest quality which are:

  • an exciting idea
  • visually impressive
  • encourages people to think about the location in Trafalgar Square and London more generally