Back in 1892 the residents of Mitchell, South Dakota wanted to tell the world “Hey, South Dakota IS a great place to live! In fact, our soil is so fertile we can decorate our buildings with our surplus of grains & corn!” The Corn Palace was born! Today, visitors can see the third incarnation of the Palace, stripped down each year and completely redecorated with murals made from several colorful varieties of corn.

We want you to enter your products at this year’s festival! Click here for an entry form. 

Ages 6 & over are eligible to compete in the Corn Palace Festival Open Class Exhibits. (Age as of Tuesday, August 20, 2013)

All the requirements for each exhibit can be found in the Corn Palace Festival Open Class Exhibit Book. Each exhibit must be marked with an entry tag containing the exhibitor’s name, age, category, class, division, and a brief description of the exhibit. Click here for entry tag.

Pre-registration for the Corn Palace Festival Open Class Exhibits are due by August 20, 2013. Exhibits must be registered. Exhibit registration can be done online or forms may be mailed to: Mark Schilling, Corn Palace, 612 North Main Street, Mitchell, SD 57301 or brought to the Corn Palace Box Office.

Exhibits must be delivered to the Corn Palace on Tuesday, August 20, 2013 by 6 p.m. The judging will begin at that time. All projects will be displayed by 2 p.m. the following day. All exhibits must be picked up from the Corn Palace on Monday, August 26, 2013 between the hours of 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. or will be discarded.

There is a maximum of one entry per person per class.

All beginner exhibits will be given a ribbon. A grand champion, first and place ribbon will be awarded in all other divisions. A grand champion will be announced in each division of every class and will receive a ribbon along with a Corn Palace Festival prize (carnival ride pass or concert ticket).

Exhibits will be judged on:

• Visual appearance
• Originality
• Workmanship/Craftsmanship

Class Numbering System

• Example: Arts & Crafts 001 (B)
  • The word(s) are the Category. Arts & Crafts
  • The 3 digits are the Class. 001
  • The letter in parenthesis is the Division.
    • (B) Beginning level, ages 6-12
    • (J) Junior level, ages 13-18
    • (S) Senior level, ages 19 and over (Age as of Tuesday, August 20, 2013)

Art, Crafts & Photography
Coloring Contest 001 (B) 
Color the selected festival picture. The entry picture can be picked up at the Corn Palace Box Office or click here for the entry picture. 

Design Art 002 (J) 002 (S)
All design art items need to include an agriculture theme. Design art items may include any form of painting, drawing, chalk, graphic art, clay and other forms. 

Corn Craft 003 (B) 003 (J) 003 (S)
Corn Crafts must include some part of corn such as: kernels, cob, husk, stalk, and/or silk 

Agriculture Craft 004 (B) 004 (J) 004 (S)
Agricultural crafts must include an agricultural product. 

Photography 005 (B) 005 (J) 005 (S)
Photos can be standard or digital, black and white or color. The photo subjects should be in relation to corn or agriculture. Photos need to be displayed on mounting board or matte board. The boards may not exceed 18x24". The exhibit may contain one picture or a collage of photos. Rubber cement, photo tape (non-double stick regular tape), adhesive spray, photo sticker squares or other acceptable photo methods may be used to attach the photos to the boards. 

Decorated Novelty Cake – Animal, Figure, etc.
502 (B)        
502 (J)        
502 (S)
Description – Have fun with this one! Cakes of any shapes or styles are encouraged. Cakes should be exhibited in a disposable pan or board.

Cookies, Exhibitors Choice
503 (B)        
503 (J)        
503 (S)
Description – Six (6) cookies are to be exhibited on a paper plate in a sealed plastic bag (either a zipper-close bag or a plastic bag closed with a twist fastener). Please do not use plastic wrap to cover food items.