Young Guns recognizes the vanguard of creative professionals 30 years of age and under. Founded in 1996, the portfolio-based competition has grown to become one of the most coveted awards for young creatives aroundthe globe. For many, being named a Young Guns winner is a sure sign of a skyrocketing career, as well as a source of validation for all of the stressful days and sleepless nights that have come with early successes.
Program branding and design of the Cube award itself is reimagined each year by a past Young Gun winner. This year’s YG20 branding and award are designed by Zipeng Zhu (YG13), Founder and Creative Director of Dazzle Studio. The font for the YG20 branding is created by NaN.
Early Deadline: June 30, 2022
COLORFUL: A PRELUDE TO YOUNG GUNS 20
Summer is right around the corner, and with that comes another season of Young Guns, the career-changing portfolio competition for creative professionals 30 years of age and under. And while Young Guns has made major strides in recent years to better reflect the diversity of the creative community it elevates, for the second year we are taking a bold step forward ahead of the competition.
COLORFUL is a free-to-enter competition co-founded with acclaimed first-generation Filipinx designer and Young Guns 8 winner Rich Tu. COLORFUL is open to BIPOC creatives who meet the qualifications of entering Young Guns — 30 years of age and under with at least two years of professional experience under their belts — but haven't yet won Young Guns.
The first ten qualifying entrants to COLORFUL will automatically receive free entry into YG20 later this spring, while a BIPOC jury of past Young Guns winners will review submissions and select one gifted entrant to receive the first-place grant of $3,000 towards a professional dream project of their choosing. Runner up will receive a $2,000 grant, and two third-place winners will each receive $1,000. In addition, the jury will choose a class of finalists who will also move onto YG20 free of charge.
Young Guns has long been a goal for countless young creatives around the world to aspire to. With COLORFUL, we hope to put more Black, Latinx, Asian and Indigenous talent into that spotlight.
COLORFUL is made possible by a donation from Russell's Reserve and Rich Tu. Branding for COLORFUL was created by Leandro Assis(YG18).
COLORFUL IS NOW CLOSED TO NEW ENTRIES. WINNERS + FINALISTS WILL BE ANNOUNCED IN THE SUMMER OF 2022.
