COSI Art Contest

For millennia, maritime artists have captured the beauty, strength, and mystique of ships and the waters they sailed. Some artists portrayed these rustic vessels battling a great storm, while others chose a calmer seascape. Inspired by Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition, which explores the most famous ocean liner and the legacies of its passengers, your challenge is to imagine, create, and illustrate your own interpretation of nautical artwork. Are you inspired by navigational charts with topography that illustrate a ship’s voyage? Or perhaps your interest lies in the mechanics and inner workings of a ship and creating your own vision for a futuristic vessel? From imaginary ships and seascapes to natural shorelines and fantastical sea creatures, sail “full STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, math) ahead” into your imagination and submit your maritime artwork to COSI’s next community art exhibition.

Contest entries are now closed!

If you are unable to fill out the submission form, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Submission Deadline is January 19, 2024 at midnight. No late entries will be accepted.
Questions? Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

• Artists may submit ONE image of 2-Dimensional or 3-Dimensional art for consideration (all 2D media are welcome-drawing, painting, prints, collage, photography, digital, etc)
• 3-Dimensional work will ONLY be accepted if in a shadowbox frame and/or substrate that includes a wire hanging mechanism to hang safely on a wall. All artworks must be able to hang on a wall. D-rings with wire preferred. No sawtooth hangers. Any frame provided by the artist must use plexiglass. No glass will be accepted.
• This art exhibition features separate age categories: Adult (18+), Teen (12-17), and Youth (11 and under)
• If selected, COSI may request the original artwork remain at COSI for the duration of the Exhibition (March 9-September 2, 2024)
• Artists may enter only their original work – no reproductions of original work will be accepted
• Your submission may be displayed in COSI. Anything that is deemed inappropriate or explicit by the Judging Panel or COSI’s Project Team will not be accepted for review

• Call for Entry Open: Week of December 1, 2023
• Deadline to submit: January 19, 2024 at midnight (no late submissions will be accepted)
• Artist Notifications: Week of February 12, 2024
• Exhibition on view March 9 - September 2, 2024

• Artists may enter ONE artwork for consideration.
• Media Conditions:
  • 2D Art: must fit within one of the following frame sizes:
    1. 8.5” x 11”
    2. 11” x 17”
    3. 16” x 20”
    4. 24” x 36”
  • 3D Art: 3-Dimensional work will ONLY be accepted if in a shadowbox frame and/or attached to a substrate that includes a hanging mechanism to hang safely on a wall. Due to the hands-on/interactive nature of the museum, some guests may have curious hands and touch the work. Please make sure all components of the piece are firmly attached to the substrate. By applying to the call for art, you acknowledge that your work may be touched.
    Size: shadowbox frame must not exceed 24” on longest side. Weight capacity 10lb. Questions? Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
• COSI will frame and display 2-Dimensional entries on paper. Works on panel and canvas will not be framed.
• Works on canvas and panel must have D-rings and wire installed on the back to be ready to hang.
• NO sawtooth hangers please.
• Upon delivery, if an accepted artwork is found to have been misrepresented, it may be disqualified.
• Submissions will only be accepted via website form.

• Artwork must be photographed straight, in focus, and on a solid background.
• Label uploaded image with title of artwork and artist name (ie: title.lastname.jpg)
• Uploaded image must be high resolution, less than 8 MB and saved as a JPEG or PDF.
• If your total image file size is greater than 8 MB, you may resize the image through one of these free photo editing programs: Microsoft Image Resizer, Microsoft Photo Editor, Picasa, etc.

Molly Sampson is the Executive Director of the Maritime Museum of Sandusky. A native of Northwest Ohio and a BGSU Alumna, she is passionate about sharing her love of history. Previously, she has worked at the University of Findlay’s Mazza Museum and the Sicth Cavalry Museum. Sampson is currently pursuing a master’s in WWII Studies. She hopes to see you at the Maritime Museum soon!

Linda Pansing is Curator of Archaeology for the Ohio History Connection where she is responsible for the care of artifacts that span over 15,000 years of Ohio’s history. She received her degrees from The Ohio State University and did her underwater field work with Florida State University. Linda is also a scuba instructor and has been actively diving since 1988. She has conducted field research and/or has been project manager for surveys of terrestrial and underwater sites that date from the Late Pleistocene to the 20th century. She is a member of numerous Ohio scuba clubs and is a co-founder of the Maritime Archaeological Survey Team (MAST), a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to the documentation, scientific study and education pertaining to underwater archaeological resources.

Adrian French has led COSI’s fabrication department for the last 10 years, working closely with the Design team to engineer, build and install many of COSI’s current exhibits. He received his MFA from San Diego State University where he proudly studied furniture design under the tutelage of Wendy Maruyama. After graduating, he moved with his wife to Berlin Germany for two years to work with architect Tilman Stachat, building one of a kind unique wooden playgrounds for the city of Schleswig, Lubeck, and Berlin. After returning to the States in 2008 and settling in Columbus Ohio, Adrian spent 5 semesters teaching sculpture and drawing classes at Denison University, taught a summer woodworking course at the Anderson Ranch Art Center, and worked as an art handler for the Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University before settling into his current role at COSI.