2 Lebanese among Abraaj Art Prize winners

The Abraaj Capital Art Prize has named the five winners of its fifth edition: Lebanon’s Vartan Avakian and Rayyane Tabet, Syria’s Hrair Sarkissian, Egypt’s Iman Issa and Huma Mulji from Pakistan. In the press release announcing its 2013 recipients, Abraaj Capital Art Prize spokesmen went on to say that the winners share a strong regional and international exhibition history and have shown works in recent editions of ArtDubai and the Sharjah Biennial. Founded in 2008, ACAP rewards chosen artists on the basis of a proposal rather than completed works of art. The prize is aimed at curators and artists working together as opposed to a single artist and seeks to afford winners the opportunity to develop ambitious projects which would not have been possible without these funds. As it is presently configured, the ACAP is awarded annually to five artists on the basis of proposals for new artworks. Between now and the unveiling of their projects at ArtDubai (scheduled for March 20-23 2013), the five artists will each have a budget of up to $120,000 with which to realize the five works they’ve proposed. The selected guest curator for the 2013 edition freelance critic and curator Murtaza Vali, who is responsible for working with the artists in completing their projects, as well as producing and publishing the Abraaj annual catalogue. “In the five years since we started the Abraaj Capital Art Prize, it has consistently shone a spotlight on diverse creative talent from the MENASA region, and propelled its winners to even greater achievements,” said ACAP chair Savita Apte. “The five artists we are announcing today are all actively engaged in pushing boundaries and developing dynamic visual experiences within the arts sector in their respective home countries and abroad.” The Selection Committee for the prize includes leading experts in the field of the visual arts including: ArtDubai director Antonia Carver; Canvas magazine’s publisher and editor-in-chief Ali Khadra; art historian and curator Salwa Mikdadi; the Tate’s Daskalopoulos Curator for International Art Jessica Morgan; Elaine Ng, the editor of Art Asia Pacific magazine; Museum of Modern Art director Glenn Lowry; Nat Muller, ACAP’s 2012 Guest Curator and Dana Farouki, a patron. The prize aims to give talented artists the opportunity to break new ground and showcase the diverse and rich artistic and cultural heritage of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asian region. Following their unveiling at the ArtDubai art fair, the works generated for the prize become permanent additions to the Abraaj Capital Art Collection. Abraaj Capital is a private equity manager investing in global growth markets. From / Daily Star