Art Basel Shines a Light on 36 Creators with Radical Vision
The premier art fair’s inaugural awards is celebrating ‘the full spectrum of the art industry’ across the 36 medallists who will now vote to select 12 Gold Medal recipients, to be revealed this December in Miami. Save to My Ocula
Art Basel is kicking off its inaugural awards by announcing the 36 artists and curators it will honour as medallists and ask to be part of the process of choosing the winners of big financial prizes for artists later in the year.
The list of 36 curators, institutions, and cross-disciplinary figures ranges from iconic figures such as Adrian Piper and Lubaina Himid to established artists like Nairy Baghramian, Cao Fei, and Ho Tzu Nyen.
Emerging voices like Pan Daijing and Saodat Ismailova have also been recognised, alongside curators like Candice Hopkins, noted for her leadership in advancing Indigenous perspectives within art history.
The 36 medallists will vote for the winners of 12 Gold Medals, with the results to be announced in Miami this December.
Each artist chosen as a Gold Medalist will receive $50,000.
Medalists will be honoured at Art Basel in Switzerland this June and will lead the inaugural Art Basel Awards Summit on 20 June.
Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama—who previously spoke with Ocula about the importance of posing ‘contradictory’ questions to navigate the complexities of the world and the art industry—was also recognised. RAW Material Company received a nod in tribute to its founder, the late Koyo Kouoh, who served as a jury member for the award. —[O]
Main image: Courtesy Art Basel.
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