Kuenyehia Prize for Contemporary Art entry opens
West African visual artists between the ages of 18 and 40 have up to Friday, December 2, this year to present their works for a chance to win a prize of $10,000 in the 2022 edition of Kuenyehia Prize for Contemporary Art.
The prize is limited to paintings, drawings, photographs, sculpture, carvings and installations.
Advertisement
An independent jury will select the winner based on the trajectory of the artists’ work and their artistic statement.
The winner will be announced in January next year after shortlisted artists have participated in a month-long exhibition to be curated by the Kuenyehia Trust for Contemporary Art.
All the shortlisted artists will benefit from the Prize’s unique Creative Accelerator Programme.
The accelerator programme provides intense practical training, mentoring and exposure to global best practices to help artists build sustainable artistic ways of doing things.
The Prize Coordinator, Isaac Ashalley, said the number and quality of submissions continued to increase each year.
“Last year, we received 266 entries from artists in 14 West African countries, with Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal making up the majority. For 2022, we expect there will be even more entries and that the entries will be of an even higher standard,” he added.
Previous shortlisted and winning artists include Lois Arde-Acquah, Bright Ackwerh, Kwame Akoto-Bamfo, Yaw Owusu and Isshaq Ismail.
Mr Ashalley encouraged eligible artists to visit the prize website, www.kuenyehiaprize.org, to apply.
About prize
The Kuenyehia Prize for Contemporary Art is the flagship programme of Kuenyehia Trust for Contemporary Art, set up by Professor Elikem Nutifafa Kuenyehia in 2014 to, among others, promote and advance contemporary African art.
Inspired by the world’s most famous art prize, UK’s Turner Prize, Kuenyehia Prize for Contemporary Art aims to encourage talented West African artists to pursue their dreams and to support them in building sustainable careers in art.
The Trust provides its artists with multiple platforms to showcase and promote their work.
These include opportunities to participate in exhibitions, talks and publications.
The Prize’s previous winners and shortlisted artists had opportunities to showcase their works at leading art fairs, such as FNB Johannesburg Art Fair, and at events in the United States and Spain.
The prominence that the Trust gives to artists provides them with an accelerated career boost, direct financial gain and immense opportunity both locally and internationally.
The Prize has also built collaborations with renowned cultural institutions, including ANO Gallery, British Council Accra, Alliance Française and the Dei Centre for Contemporary African Art.
