The Sovereign Art Foundation (SAF) has announced the 30 artists shortlisted for the 2024 Sovereign Asian Art Prize, which marks the 20th anniversary of Asia’s most coveted award in contemporary art.
As well as providing artists with international recognition and generous financial prizes, the Prize is an important charitable endeavour, raising substantial funds to support disadvantaged children by auctioning finalists’ artworks.
The artworks were shortlisted from the 362 entries nominated by independent professionals from 171 artists in 15 countries across the Asia-Pacific region. Hong Kong is the most strongly represented with nine shortlisted artists and nearly two-thirds of the shortlisted artists.
A judging panel will now select two finalists to be awarded the USD30,000 Grand Prize and the USD5,000 Vogue Hong Kong Women’s Art Prize, respectively. A USD1,000 Public Vote Prize will also be awarded to the artist whose work attracts the most votes from the public, either online or in person, when they go on display.
This year’s judging panel comprises writer, curator and museum director, David Elliott (Chair Judge); Executive Director and Curator at Para Site in Hong Kong, Billy Tang; artist and former Prize recipient, Debbie Han; independent curator, critic and policy analyst, Marion Pastor Roces; and artist and winner of the 2023 Prize, Parul Gupta.
“The origins of the 30 artists who appear in this year’s final cover the four points of the compass within Asia and, with the outstanding quality of the works shown, it is a tribute to the dedication and knowledge of the Prize’s nominators who have handpicked these artists for consideration by the judges,” said Chair Judge David Elliott.
“The fact that the majority of the finalists happen to be women, and that nearly one third of them are resident in Hong Kong, cannot be easily explained because each judge decides according to their own criteria that are based solely on the works in question. It does, however, does mark a significant milestone in the Prize’s history. In future years, different patterns will no doubt emerge that will continue to express the quality, diversity, energ, and clear vision of art made in Asia.”
The 30 finalists’ artworks will go on display at a free public exhibition at 9/F, H Queen’s on Queen’s Road Central in Hong Kong from 3 to 16 May. Younger visitors will be able to explore the exhibition’s key themes with a special self-guided activity, developed by SAF’s experienced art therapists and programme facilitators to promote family bonding and self-discovery through art.
The finalists’ artworks can be purchased at the exhibition at a fixed price on a first-come-first-served basis. The remaining works, except for the Grand Prize winner, will then be auctioned at a Gala Dinner at the Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong on 17 May 2024, with the proceeds split evenly between the artists and SAF’s charity programmes. Pre-bidding will be offered through SAF’s website from 3 May.
The auction funds will support SAF’s Make It Better (MIB) programme, which has been providing expressive arts workshops for children living in Hong Kong’s most disadvantaged communities since 2013. The workshops support the social, emotional, and behavioural challenges of children with special educational needs including autism, ADHD, and other specific learning difficulties, and are run by a professional team of registered Art Therapists.
The programme currently serves over 170 beneficiaries weekly and has recently expanded to provide education, training and support for the children’s caregivers and social workers. MIB is run entirely on donations and the public are encouraged to give generously by bidding on artworks or making donations.
Other events to be held in celebration of the Prize’s 20th anniversary include an ‘anonymous’ exhibition at Art Central from 28 to 31 March at the Central Harbourfront, which will provide an opportunity for members of the public to purchase original pieces from over 70 professional alumni of the Prize. The identities of the artists will only be revealed only after the works have been purchased.
This autumn, SAF will also be launching a ‘winner’s retrospective’, an event that will chart the success and growth of The Prize over the past two decades by offering a rare opportunity to view work by the full roster of previous Grand Prize recipients.
“It has been such a privilege to witness the steady evolution of the Prize over the past two decades and the ways in which it has help springboard the careers of so many remarkable artists and we know this year will be no exception,” said Tiffany Pinkstone, Co-Founder and Director of SAF.
“We could not have achieved this without the support of our sponsors, nominators and judges, both for this year and to all those who have so generously gave their time and expertise over the years and helped us build The Prize into what it is today.”
“We now invite the Hong Kong public and international guests to visit the exhibition and have their say by selecting who they think should win the public vote prize, and to experience first-hand the incredible talent on display. It’s also a great opportunity for collectors to acquire works by artists who have been independently vetted and are almost certainly set for even greater success in the future,” she added.
