Announced the winners of Arte Laguna Prize 2023
March 12, 2023
The enhancement of Creativity
VENICE, 11th March 2023 – This morning the winners of the 16th and 17th editions of Arte Laguna Prize were announced.
The winner of the 16th edition is Anna Drozd-Tutaj(Poland) of the “Sculpture and Installation” category with the work The power of the Element, a rare example of a work of art that uses crochet doilies to create a contemporary and spectacular composition which, despite its monumentality, retains an ephemeral character. The jury’s motivation reads: “The jury selected the site-specific installation by the Polish artist Anna Drosz-Tutaj for its linearity and clean execution. It is a visual device that, through the assembly of colored doilies, evokes the power of the elements and of the memory which compacts our emotional and logical being. Stability and dynamism, original and original, operate as aconspiratio oppositorumin perfect harmony”.
The winner of the 17th edition is Ohau Chen(Taiwan) with the work Back to Glory: Make __ Great again from the category of “Sculpture and Installation“. Ohau uses the video installation to propose a hypothetical future through the use of common political propaganda materials. The artist invites the public to cast their vote on an imaginary proposal for the militarization of the elderly population as a response to the progressive aging of society. «The work presents a dystopian future in which the elderly are persuaded to serve the national army in preparation for an imminent war – it reads in the jury’s motivation. Though hypothetical, this condition speaks to present reality and the dread of conflict that hangs over us indiscriminately. The dilemma is clear: Whom to sacrifice? Young or old? The artist invites the public to vote. The cynicism of the work exacerbates the artist’s critical stance on issues such as biopower and thanatocracy in our increasingly technocratic contemporary world. How is the human body dehumanized and exploited? What decision-making processes and governance structures are at stake? The promise of a binary democracy failed because it continued to function by presenting the illusion of free choice. The jury was impressed by the clever mix of various media and the interdisciplinary approach to the work. The artist’s unique sense of humor and visual language, as well as reinventing the aesthetics and sensibility of propaganda, further convinced us to embrace his invitation to reflect on today’s condition.”
The jury chose to confer two mentions of honor, one for each edition: for the16th edition, it goes to Kailum Graves, with the photographic work The Otherness of Self, and for the17th edition for Chih Chiu with the performance Self-Service Barbershop.
Theworks of Anna Drozd-Tutaj and Ohau Chen are exposed until 16th April 2023 in the extraordinary spaces of Arsenale Nord in Venice together with the works of the other finalists of Arte Laguna Prize, counting 240 works of art coming from over 50 states in the whole world.
Numerous Special Prizes were also assigned, which provide the production of works, residencies all over the world, the opportunity to exhibit in important galleries, international and Italian festivals, collaborations with companies, and monetary prizes, confirming Arte Laguna Prize as one of the most important competitions with the most opportunities for the artists.
Winners of Special Prizes of the 16th Edition are;
Artist in Residence:
Espronceda, Barcelona: Larisse Hall
KW Institute, Berlin: Khalil Charif
Ru Residency Unlimited, New York: Shirin Gunny, Quatre-Bornes, Mauritius,
Art Residency Galliani, Reggio Emilia: Eleonora Monguzzi Fonderia Artistica Versiliese, Lucca: Federica Zianni Villa Roberti, Brugine: Serena Bellini
Villa San Liberale, Feltre: Jingyun Wang Villa Rechsteiner, Oderzo: Luisa Turuani
Artists in gallery:
Cris Contini Gallery, London: Jens Hesse
Art and Sustainability:
Natura Sì, Treviso: Marina Gasparini
Business for Art:
Bios Line, Padua: Vittorio Mandelli
Festivals and Exhibitions:
Art Nova 100, China: Cinzia Campolese, Emanuele Dainotti, Elise Guillaume, Samantha Heydt, Hung Yu Hao, Kiki Kouniari, Henrik Langsdorf, Angelo Morandini, Mara Palena.
Winners of Special Prizes of the 17th Edition are;
Artist in Residence:
Bigci, Bilpin, Australia: Amalia Foka
Fabrica, Treviso: Jihyun Park
Farm Cultural Park, Favara: Mosa One e Toma Gerzha
Fonderia Artistica Versiliese, Lucca: Gaby Jonna
Espronceda, Barcelona: Gilles Dusabe
Emerging Artist Award
Anya Heymans, Hasan Kurd, Qian Wu
Business for Art:
Planium, Milan: Donatella Nobilio
Generali Valore Cultura, Venice: Wu Siou Ming
Roberto Cipresso, Siena: Vittorio Mandelli
Informatic All, Padua and Treviso: Tiziana Menichelli – Sette21
Venpa S.P.A., Venice: Karen Ghostlaw, Henrique EDMX Montanari
Artist in Gallery:
Cris Contini Gallery, London: Cristián Meza
Sustainability and Art:
Ars, Treviso: Daniel Espinosa, Silvia Canton (special mention)
Festivals and exhibitions:
Art Nova 100, China: Ronald Anzenberger, Bordage Tanguy, Andrea K. Schlehwein, Gabrielle Lansner, Ryan Andrew Lee, Jialiang Liu, Elena Mocchetti, KHU, Andy Storchenegger, Songkai Zhou
BJCEM Mediterranea 20 – Biennal Young Artists: Davide Ronco
Special Mention, Sanith Pharma: Giorgia Maria Sbaraglia
THE JURIES
16° edition: Kobi Ben-Meir– Chief Curator oh Haifa Museum of Art (Israel);Louise Fedotov-Clements– Artistic Director of Quad and director of Format International Photography Festival (United Kingdom);Pasquale Lettieri– Curator, critic, historian, academic and journalist (Italy);Alka Pande– Arts consultant and curator of Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Center in New Delhi (India);Danilo Premoli– Architect, designer, artist (Italy);Alisa Prudnikova– Founder and Art Director of Industrial Biennal of Urals (Russia).
17° edition: Mohamed Benhadj– Curator and founder of Altiba9 (North Africa and Spain);Raphael Chikukwa– Executive Director of National Gallery of Zimbabwe;Giulia Colletti– Curator of digital content and consultant of collateral activities in Rivoli’s Castle Art Contemporary Museum, Turin (Italy);Paul Di Felice– Curator, critic and Art historian (Luxemburg);Chloe Hodge– Project manager of Tate Britain, curator and producer (Regno Unito);Dick Spierenburg– Designer and art director of IMM – International Furniture and Interiors fair in Cologne (Netherlands);Xiaoyu Weng– Curator and Head of modern and contemporary art for Art Gallery in Ontario (United States and Canada).
Title - Arte Laguna Prize
Promoted by Cultural Association MoCA (Modern and Contemporary Art)
Under the patronage of Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Environment and land and sea protection, Region of Veneto, Metropolitan city of Venice, Town of Venice, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, European Institute of Design in Venice, Nappe of Arsenale Nord, waterboard stop Bacini/Arsenale Nord
Dates- 11th March– 16th April 2023
Opening hours - daily 10 am – 6 pm
Free admission, with liberal donation to the cultural association MoCA
Catalogue Digital, with critical text by curator Luca Beatrice
Info to the public at artelagunaprize.com
Photo Credit: Arte Laguna Prize
