Under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Shamsa bint Hamdan Al Nahyan, NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD), in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation (ADMAF), have announced the opening of applications for the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award 2022, with submissions welcome until January 31, 2022.
Produced annually since 2013, in collaboration with The NYUAD Art Gallery, the tenth edition of the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award serves as a launch pad for artists across the Emirates, encouraging new artwork and offering winners insight into professional life as an artist, from commission to exhibition. The program is open to UAE-based students and recent graduates.
Entrants may select any media with which they wish to work. This includes, but is not limited to, photography, sculpture, installation, land art and video. They are also encouraged to think creatively about how to exhibit their work in a public context.
This year’s winning artist or team will be awarded USD 10,000 to complete their installation. In the true spirit of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s work, the winning artwork will be publicly exhibited and enjoyed in Abu Dhabi, in November 2022.
Internationally acclaimed artists Christo and his wife and artistic partner Jeanne-Claude had a relationship with the UAE spanning four decades. It was Christo’s desire to support emerging artists in the UAE that resulted in the creation of an award in his name in 2012. Jeanne-Claude passed away in November 2009, and Christo died in 2020.
Commenting on the tenth edition, Executive Director of The NYUAD Art Gallery and the University’s Chief Curator Maya Allison said: “Each year this Award sparks meaningful new growth across the UAE’s creative community, as the artists work with the many people necessary to bring a major public artwork into being. That journey to the unveiling of the artwork is where I see Christo’s vision truly come alive. It is an honor for NYUAD to help make this possible.”
Director of The Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award Emily Doherty added: “Today we are celebrating a decade of this ground-breaking art award: a project inspired by Christo’s close relationship with the UAE and one that has consistently provided a public platform for emerging artists. In our tenth year of The Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award, we honor our winning alumni – especially those for whom the pandemic posed such tremendous challenges – and look forward to receiving new artistic proposals for 2022.”
Christo and Jeanne-Claude created highly celebrated works of art around the world, changing the concept of “public art” by creating temporary works that were transitory by design. L’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped saw the Paris landmark wrapped in fabric last month, fulfilling a 60-year dream for the Bulgarian-born artist. There are also plans to fulfil the couple’s decades-long dream to build a ‘Mastaba’ structure in the Liwa desert, constructed from 410,000 multicoloured steel barrels.
Members of the award selection committee in the past included H.E. Huda Al Khamis-Kanoo, former NYUAD Provost Fabio Piano, Director of Abu Dhabi Art Dyala Nusseibeh, artist Azza Al Qubaisi,and guest juror Kevin Jones.
To apply, all entrants need to complete an application form, which includes a proposed budget. For more information visit nyuad.nyu.edu/christo.
