The Sovereign Art Foundation Students Prize launches in Gibraltar for 2021
Sovereign is immensely proud of its charitable arm, The Sovereign Art Foundation (SAF) – a charitable organisation founded in 2003 to recognise, support and promote contemporary art talent and to bring the therapeutic benefits of art to disadvantaged children.
SAF recently announced the arrival of the inaugural edition of the Sovereign Art Foundation Students Prize, Gibraltar. This annual award celebrates the talent and quality of artworks of secondary school art students, whilst drawing awareness to the importance of art in the education system and rewarding secondary school art programmes for nurturing this talent.
Art teachers of secondary schools in Gibraltar have been invited to nominate their best art students to submit artworks to the competition online between 28 June – 22 October 2021. The 20 shortlisted artworks will be displayed in Gibraltar in the Finalists’ Exhibition in early December, details to follow.
The overall winner of The Sovereign Art Foundation Students Prize, Gibraltar 2021 will be determined when the judging panel examine the shortlisted works at the Finalists Exhibition; selecting one student to be awarded the Judges’ Prize trophy and £800 (their school art department will receive £2,000). To boost public engagement and increase exposure for the students, exhibition visitors and online viewers will be invited to cast a vote for their favourite finalist artwork to receive the Public Vote Prize trophy and £400 (and their school £1,000).
The judging panel comprises professionals from different facets of the art world, including Gibraltarian contemporary artist, Christian Hook, who won the Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year Award in 2014. His subjects have included Sir Ian McKellan, Simon Callow and Kristen Scott Thomas; Gallerist and Curator Magda Bellotti, who is of Gibraltarian descent and recently curated an exhibition at the Gustavo Bacarisas Gallery, Winds of Pontiente, Mrs Gabriela Giménez, professor for Arts & Heritage at Escuela Superior de Turismo Costa del Sol and Howard Bilton, Founder and Chairman of SAF.
The SAF Students Prizes are annual awards championing the importance of art in the education system. SAF runs ten Student Prizes around the world and Gibraltar is the latest addition to the portfolio. The winners of both Gibraltar prizes (Judges and Public) will be automatically entered into the annual SAF Global Students Prize, showcasing their talent on an international stage and facilitating cultural exchange and dialogue.
Howard Bilton Founder and Chairman of The Sovereign Art Foundation, commented: “We are thrilled to see the SAF Students Prize coming to Gibraltar, the birthplace and head office of Sovereign, since 1987. We are somewhat late initiating a students’ prize in Gibraltar. We have existing students prizes in Isle of Man, Malta, Hong Kong, Singapore, Portugal, Guernsey, Bahrain, Mauritius, London. The Prizes encourage art and creativity and raise a little money for local charities if works are sold. The Prizes have gained huge interest from students around the world, and we are excited to be able to give students in Gibraltar this platform and opportunity.”
The Sovereign Art Foundation Students Prize, Gibraltar 2021 is staged with support from Ministry for Culture, Gibraltar.
If you or your business are interested in supporting the SAF Students Prize Gibraltar, a wide range of packages exist. Also, SAF always look to engage with local organisations that share its aims of promoting arts in the community and encouraging cultural development.
