Art Directors Club Opens Call for Entries for Global ADC Young Guns 24

Jul. 14, 2026

The global Art Directors Club, part of The One Club for Creativity, has opened the call for entries for ADC Young Guns 24, the leading global competition to celebrate international creative professionals age 30 or younger.

ADC Young Guns is the industry’s only global, cross-disciplinary, portfolio-based awards competition that identifies and celebrates today’s vanguard of young creatives.  The program is open to creatives ages 30 and under who have been working for at least two years, full-time or freelance. Eligible entrants can submit a combination of professional and personal work.

The online entry system is now open, with the reduced-fee regular deadline of August 27, 2026, and final deadline September 24, 2026.   Winners will be announced in January 2027, with the YG24 awards ceremony and party slated for January 27, 2027 in New York.

The renowned competitions regularly attract entries from upwards of 45 countries, with more than half coming from outside the US.  Winners will be selected by a jury made up of past ADC Young Guns winners and other creative leaders, to be announced shortly.

All ADC Young Guns winners receive a unique version of the iconic ADC Young Guns Cube, designed exclusively for this year’s incoming class, and have their permanent profile page added to the YG website.  

Winners also receive a complimentary one-year One Club for Creativity membership, permanent membership in the YG network, a chance to be featured in YG events and an assortment of career-boosting opportunities from YG sponsors.

ADC Young Guns 24 branding and YG Cube trophy were created by Brooklyn-based independent illustrator and designer Chantal Jahchan, a winner in last year’s YG23 competition.  

Jahchan said:

“This year’s identity features bold typography, juxtaposed with a collection of elemental glyphs symbolizing memory, expression, and connection. It's inspired by the idea that the act of making is fundamentally and universally human.”

 

Past ADC Young Guns include rising stars who went on to become leaders in their chosen fields, including Oscar-winning film director duo DANIELS (Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert) (YG14), “Top Gun Maverick” director Joseph Kosinski (YG4); graphic designers James Victore (YG1), Stefan Sagmeister (YG1), Natasha Jen (YG4) and Jessica Walsh (YG8); artist/designer Rich Tu (YG8); ad creatives Rei Inamoto (YG4) and Menno Kluin (YG6); illustrators Christoph Niemann (YG2) and Deanne Cheuk (YG4); fashion designer Kerby Jean-Raymond (YG14); artist/filmmaker Calmatic (YG16); director/photographer India Sleem (YG17); typographers Alex Trochut (YG6) and Gemma O’Brien (YG13); animation artist Todd St. John (YG1), and others.