The artist Tony Gum is the recipient of the 2017 Miami Beach Pulse Prize, the fair announced today. The jury selected the South African artist to receive a cash grant of $2,500, chosen based on her solo show for Christopher Moller Gallery.
Gum’s presentation, “Ode to She,” is a timely reflection on her own experience as a Xhosa woman. Her work is rooted in the tradition known as intonjane, where a young girl evolves physically and spiritually through the many stages of her native culture.
At barely 22 years old, Gum is certainly a young artist on the rise, and definitely has both buzz and a real fan base. Vogue anointed her “the coolest girl in Cape Town” and her 40,000 Instagram followers seem to agree.
Tony Gum’s Xhosa Woman-Umama omkhulu. Courtesy of the artist and Chistopher Moller Gallery.
Gum was one of at least 15 nominees for this year’s prize, and joins a roster of past winners that includes the multi-media artist Devan Shimoyama of Samuel Freeman Gallery, last year’s winner.
The prize winner was selected from a panel of art world experts, including the associate director of the newly opened ICA Miami, Tommy Ralph Pace. In a statement, Pace lauded “Pulse Art Fair’s commitment to presenting solo artist projects provides critical exposure for young and under-recognized artists.”