Rua D. Manuel II (Jardins do Palácio de Cristal)
4050-346 Porto
Portugal
The winners of the second edition of the Paulo Cunha e Silva Art Prize have been named. The biannual prize is aimed at artists under 40, and was created by the Porto City Council as a tribute to the former Councillor for Culture, Paulo Cunha e Silva, doctor, art critic and curator, whose professional activity was always linked to theoretical reflection on contemporary art.
Although the Paulo Cunha e Silva Art Prize aims to award a single artist from a group of finalists, the jury proposed dividing the monetary value of 25,000 EUR between this edition’s six finalists—Basir Mahmood (Pakistan), Firenze Lai (Hong Kong), Lebohang Kganye (South Africa), Shaikha Al Mazrou (UAE), Song Ta (China) and Steffani Jemison (USA)—whose works are on display at the Galeria Municipal do Porto.
Due to the restrictions resulting from the pandemic situation, the jury members Isabel Lewis, John Akomfrah, Margarida Mendes and Shumon Basar were unable to visit the exhibition and personally assess the work of the finalists that they had nominated. These exceptional conditions also meant that the six finalists were unable to install or accompany the assembly of their works in the exhibition space, prior to the inauguration of the exhibition. As a result, the judges considered that it was impossible to ensure the ideal conditions for awarding a single winner of the Prize’s second edition and therefore suggested the division of the prize money between the six finalists.
The jury had already analysed the portfolios of 48 artists, selected by a group of 16 curators, appointed by them. Lastly, they selected the six finalists who have now been declared joint winners. In the words of the four jurors, these artists have “voices—aesthetic, ethical, technical—that articulate the current moment, or, even, sense what is to come.”
Basir Mahmood uses video, film and photography to reflect on social and historical situations, rooted in daily life, while Firenze Lai tries to express states of expanded perception through her paintings and drawings. Lebohang Kganye merges fictional characters with “real” characters, to create stories that incorporate sculpture, installation and film. Sculpture is also the preferred art form of Shaikha Al Mazrou, who is fascinated by materiality in art, working with colour and shapes to create geometric and abstract arrangements.
Song Ta often seeks to provoke and antagonise the established boundaries between institutional and commercial definitions of art by creating works that explore the daily conduct of specific groups in society, and Steffani Jemison addresses privacy and opacity as strategies for abstraction and political resistance.
Jury
Isabel Lewis, John Akomfrah, Margarida Mendes, Shumon Basar
16 curators
Aram Moshayedi, Binna Choi, Christine Tohme, Claire Tancons, Claude Adjil, Clémentine Deliss, Cliff Lauson, Daniel Blanga Gubbay, Elise Atangana, Elvira Dyangani Ose, Lara Khaldi, Marlies Wirth, Natasha Ginwala, Ute Meta Bauer, Zhang Wei and Hu Fang, Zoé Whitley
48 artists
Adrián Balseca, Alia Farid, Alice Miceli, Art Group 705, Barbara Kapusta, Basir Mahmood, Basma Alsharif, Benji Boyadgian, Bronwyn Katz, Christian Nyampeta, Diedrick Brackens, Dina Khouri, Fiona Connor, Firenze Lai, Gala Porras-Kim, Haig Aivazian, Heba Y. Amin, Ilya Fedotov-Fedorov, Imran Perretta, Jasmijn Visser, Kokou Ferdinand Makouvia, Kudzanai-Violet Hwami, Larry Achiampong, Lebohang Kganye, Louis Henderson, Lydia Ourahmane, Mahmoud Khaled, Matt Copson, Meriem Bennani, Miranda Moss, Mire Lee, Munem Wasif, Noor Abuarafeh, Núria Güell, Ola Hassanain, Philip Mueller, Philipp Timischl, Phoebe Boswell, Precious Okoyomon, Riet Wijnen, Shaikha Al Mazrou, Song Ta, Steffani Jemison, Tarek Lakhrissi, Tiphaine Calmettes, Yan Xing, Yve Laris Cohen, Zarina Muhammad
Finalists/winners
Basir Mahmood, Firenze Lai, Lebohang Kganye, Shaikha Al Mazrou, Song Ta, Steffani Jemison
