$100,000 Abraaj Group Art Prize Gets More Competitive

Private equity investor Abraaj Group, the sponsor of Art Dubai’s Abraaj Group Art Prize, has announced a change in the prestigious award.

Until this year, artists from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia were invited to submit a proposal for a new piece and five winners had to share a US$100,000 production budget. The resulting works were then shown together in an exhibition at Art Dubai.

But things are about to get more competitive. Starting in 2015, only one project will be selected and will be funded with the full US$100,000 award. The winner will be offered a solo exhibition at the fair “to show their journey as an artist and how it has evolved,” explained Abraaj Group managing director Frederic Sicre during the Art Dubai press conference.

Next year will also see the launch of the Abraaj Group Innovation Awards. It will reward five artists with a scholarship to attend a postgraduate program at the Royal College of Art in London.

artnet News