KARACHI: The Singapore Art Museum (SAM) and Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) Foundation have announced the 15 finalists of the APB Foundation Signature Art Prize 2014, says a press release issued in this regard.
Now in its third installment, the prize spotlights the most compelling contemporary artworks created by artists in the Asia Pacific region over the last three years.
Selected by a panel of five eminent judges from around the region, the finalists’ works were chosen from 105 nominated artworks from 24 countries and territories. Innovative and exciting creations from recent years, the contemporary artworks represent the very best of the region and are intentionally not limited by genre. Spanning various mediums from painting to sculpture, photography, video works and performance art, they each address topical issues and collectively shed light not just on our region’s contemporary art landscape but also on the topics and conversations relevant in our society today.
The 15 finalists represent 13 countries and territories including Thailand, South Korea, Pakistan, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Australia, India, Bangladesh and Taiwan.
Selecting this year’s Finalists is a judging panel comprising Mr. Chris Saines, Director of Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art; Mr. Feng Boyi, eminent independent art curator and critic of Chinese contemporary art; Ms. Luckana Kunavichayanont, Director of Bangkok Art and Culture Center; Ms. Pooja Sood, Director of KHOJ International Artists’ Association; and Dr. Susie Lingham, Director of Singapore Art Museum.
A statement from the jury panel stated, “We’re excited to be presenting the finalists of the APB Foundation Signature Art Prize 2014. Narrowing the choice from over 100 works to the final 15 involved a rigorous selection process and intensive discussions – testament to the high caliber of entries that were refined, rich and diverse. Overall, the 15 works selected offer a glimpse of the future of our region’s rich and constantly evolving contemporary art scene. The finalist works stood out for their strength of concept and execution and despite stemming from such diverse contexts, histories and cultural backgrounds, cleverly explored similar issues of identity, immigration, urban expansion, depletion of natural resources, fading of old values, cultural diversity and more.”
Exploring spaces and places, Pakistan’s Farida Batool’s Kahani Eik Shehr Ki (story of a city) brings viewers on a walk down a busy city street in Lahore, capturing the side of a city that people may not know of via 21 long lenticular prints while Naeem Mohaiemen of Bangladesh presents Rankin Street, 1953, an intimate work that reveals the artist’s memories of his family using his family home as the subject and uncovering the past through vintage photograph negatives.
The APB Foundation Signature Art Prize is worth $100,000 with $60,000 awarded to the Grand Prize winner and $15,000 each for two Jurors’ Choice Award winners. A People’s Choice Award of $10,000 will also be offered to the artwork that receives the highest number of public votes via on-site and online submissions (voting opens from 14 November 2014).
The APB Foundation Signature Art Prize Exhibition will take place at SAM from 14 November 2014 to 15 March 2015 with the winners announced at an awards ceremony on 22 January 2015. For more information, please visit the APB Foundation Signature Art Prize webpage at http://www.singaporeartmuseum.sg/apbfSAP2014.html.
