Call open until June 22, 2025

With the arrival of spring, the COMEL Award returns as scheduled—the international competition that promotes the use of aluminium in art. Applications for the 2025 edition are officially open.

All adult artists living and working in Europe can participate by submitting an aluminium artwork inspired by this year’s theme: “Aluminium, the Silent Strength.”

Aluminium is a surprising material: lightweight yet strong, ductile yet tenacious. It changes shape without losing its qualities and withstands pressure and transformations while always remaining itself. It is no coincidence that aluminium is widely used in construction, transport, and everyday applications—it can transform into a thin food industry packaging while also serving as the primary material for ship and spacecraft fuselages.

Like human beings, aluminium can adapt to situations and overcome even the most difficult challenges, constantly finding new forms, structures, and balances. This edition aims to explore the resilience of this metal—as well as human resilience—in facing difficulties, tackling complex challenges, and reinventing itself each time. It is not about brute force on display but rather an underlying energy, ready to be tested without seeking attention.

Through metal, Artists are invited to convey the human ability to overcome hardships and, especially in moments of fragility, to find an inner strength that allows them to move forward. Participants will be challenged to test aluminium, exploring its ability to withstand, support, and endure over time. Applications are open until June 22.

Once the call for entries closes, critic and writer Giorgio Agnisola, alongside a jury of experts, will select 13 finalist works to be exhibited at Spazio COMEL in Latina from October 18 to November 8. At the close of the exhibition, two awards will be assigned: the 2025 COMEL Award winner, chosen by the jury, and the COMEL Audience Award winner, given to the artist whose work receives the most votes from exhibition visitors. The 2025 COMEL Award winner will receive a monetary award of €3,500 and the opportunity to expose their artworks in a solo exhibition at Spazio COMEL.