Mario Merz Prize 2014 | Italy

Mario Merz Prize 2014
Deadline: January 31, 2014

With the firm belief that art can represent freedom of thought without boundaries and promotes self-determination and the free circulation of culture and ideas, the Prize is dedicated to those who harbor the right will to pursue their research beyond the hardship determined by political, social or geographical conditions.

Given that the recent art processes focused greatly on historical, social, and political changes, while also considering the tragedies yet afflicting mankind, the Prize intends to base the selection criteria for its short list on the qualities of internationality, generosity of thought, social awareness, as well as innovative research traceable in the works and individual paths of the artists and composers selected.

To underline this idea of openness, the finalists of the Mario Merz Prize will present their works in a group exhibition and a concert to involve spectators in the final voting phase.

Among these finalists, the Jury will select the two winners, who will be commissioned new scores and projects.

The Art Prize is addressed to artists who have been already recognized for the quality of their work in their home country and are launching their career on an international level. A short list of five nominees will be selected through a nomination process. The winner will be selected by an international jury composed of Manuel Borja-Villel (Director, Museo Nacional Centro de arte Reina Sofía, Madrid), Lawrence Weiner (artist), Massimiliano Gioni (Head Curator, New Museum, New York/Art Director Fondazione Trussardi, Milan/Director of the 55 Venice Biennale) and Beatrice Merz.

Artists participating in the selection are to be nominated by curators, museum directors, art critics, gallerists or members of other cultural associations. Artists cannot nominate themselves. Each artist can receive multiple nominations. There are no restrictions with regard to age, nationality or artistic medium.

The Music Prize, which avails itself of the collaboration with the Associazione per la Musica De Sono in Turin and the Hochschule der Künste in Zurich, is dedicated to contemporary music. A short list of five nominees will be selected through a nomination process. The winner will be selected by an international jury composed of Thomas Demenga (cellist and composer), Dieter Ammann (composer), Alexander Lonquich (pianist) and Willy Merz.

Composers participating in the selection are to be nominated by music institutions, interpreters, music critics and experts. Composers cannot nominate themselves. Each composer can receive multiple nominations. There are no restrictions with regard to age, nationality or artistic medium.

Applications must be submitted online no later than January 31, 2014, completing the registration form on the Prize website: www.mariomerzprize.org.

Contacts
con.testi – Torino & Roma
Via Massena 91 – 10128, Torino
Phone +39.0115096036
Via Silla 35 – 00192, Roma
prize@fondazionemerz.org

Fondazione Merz
Via Limone 24 – 10141, Torino
Phone +39.01119719437
prize@fondazionemerz.org

New Technological Art Award | Call for entries

New Technological Art Award 
Foundation Liedts-Meesen 2014 | Call for entries
Deadline: March 31, 2014

During the last few years, Zebrastraat Ghent has developed into a stimulating knowledge centre with a strong interest in art. Every two years, Update/the New Technological Art Award (NTAA) tries to fill a gap in the mainstream art world by paying attention to the technological developments which impel our global culture.

NTAA selects and presents creations in which culture-forming technology plays a central role. Whether low or high tech, or intuitive or experimental, these creations always make us attentive to the innovative trends of our times. The exhibition of achievements of the selected winners is a compass that orients you to the relevant and innovative use of technology in the artistic sector.

A new section consists of the selection, by specialists from various sectors, of key works from the art world, from scientific discoveries or from innovative breakthroughs that have significantly changed our living and thinking habits. These objects or concepts form the basis for a separate presentation and perception, while interacting with the works of the winners of the NTAA. Entry forms and guidelines are available here:

The mission of the Update biennial events
Update's mission is to expand the scope of contemporary artistic creations and traditional media with works dedicated to employing contemporary and new technologies in an original and intelligent way: treatment of sounds and light, use of new media, application of innovative evolutions in communications, telecommunications and broadcasting, centered on the world of information, communication, and computers and interaction. These descriptions are in no way restrictive and should be interpreted in the broadest way possible.

General guidelines for entry in the NTAA competition
The aim of the competition is to present works in accordance with Update's mission. The submitted work can have been exhibited previously, but the jury reserves the right to exclude creations that are proven to be not realizable within the limits of the practical possibilities of the Liedts-Meesen Foundation, keeping in mind that the works will be displayed during the exhibition. The basic equipment is available and at the disposal of the selected artists; specific and special equipment must be provided for and lent by the artists for the duration of the exhibition.

Calendar and conditions of the competition
The choice of the projects selected by the jury will be rendered public  on June 1, 2014.

Eligibility and submission details
This international competition is open to all age groups and to all nationalities. English is the working language.

Prize
For 2014, a 5,000 euro cash award is foreseen by the Liedts-Meesen Foundation. This indivisible cash award will be allocated to a work and to its creator. Moreover, the jury reserves the right to award an honourable mention to an artist.The Liedts-Meesen Foundation and the jury reserve the right to not award the prize and to transfer it to the next exhibition. The winners of the price of the jury and of the public will be announced at the final day of the exhibition.

contacts:
Zebrastraat
Zebrastraat 32/001 
9000 Gent 
Belgium 
www.zebrastraat.be 

check for more info also here and here 

Award for Young Curators 2014

Award for Young Curators 2014 
Deadline: Friday, 14 March 2014

MARCO, Museo de Arte Contemporánea de Vigo (Spain), 49 Nord 6 Est - FRAC Lorraine, Metz (France), and SFKM, Sogn og Fjordane Kunstmuseum, Førde (Norway) organize the Award for Young Curators MARCO / FRAC Lorraine / SFKM. 

This award gives participants the opportunity to submit a topic of research and reflection which is of personal interest, and the possibility to bring it to fruition in the project venues at MARCO (first-floor gallery), FRAC Lorraine, and SFKM (mainly the ground-and first-floor galleries).

The proposal must be within the field of contemporary artistic creation and is open to any creative forms. The project may be accompanied or constituted by a program of activities in order to open a new space of reflection regarding the treated topic. In case the project—or part of it—results in an exhibition, it may include works already in the collection of FRAC Lorraine and the collections of SFKM (to be discovered during the residency in Førde).

The curator of the winning project will receive the sum of 6,500 EUR, tax included, as an honorarium. His/her travel expenses (for the residencies and installation periods in the three institutions) will be reimbursed upon presentation of appropriate supporting documents, up to 5,000 EUR, including taxes.

The winning project will have a maximum budget of 20,000 EUR for each venue. It will open in 2015.

All curators born on and after 1974 are eligible to enter the competition. If the entry is a group creation, one person will be chosen from that group to represent it and act as mediator. Curators will not be allowed to participate as artists in the projects. No more than one project per entrant will be accepted. Entries must be previously unpublished and must provide for the participation of two or more artists or contributors.

The jury will select the winning project and two finalists in May 2014. The jury's decision is final. The jury may declare the award void should they consider this necessary. The criteria for evaluating the entries will be based on quality and the originality of the research project.
The jury's decision will be made public before May 15, 2014 and all participants will be notified by email.

Entries must be exclusively and simultaneously submitted, PDF format to the following email addresses info@marcovigo.com, coordination@fraclorraine.org, and curator@misf.no with the subject: "Award for Young Curators." Dossiers received in only one venue will not be accepted. Projects must be preferably written in English, although French, Galician, Norwegian and Spanish languages are admitted. In any case, an abstract (two pages maximum) in English must be included.

Deadline for the delivery of the projects: midnight, Friday, 14 March, 2014.
Dossiers received after this time will not be accepted.

Download the awards comprehensive submission guidelines:
www.fraclorraine.org (Section: Travel / Somewhere Else) / www.marcovigo.com / www.sfk.museum.no

Future Generation Art Prize, Open Call

3rd edition of the Future Generation Art Prize
deadline: April 12, 2014

The Victor Pinchuk Foundation and the PinchukArtCentre open the application procedure for the third edition of the Future Generation Art Prize 2014. Young artists up to 35 wherever they live and work can apply starting from January 13 till April 12, 2014 at the competition’s website: futuregenerationartprize.org.

To encourage the artists from all over the world to apply, starting from 2014 the Future Generation Art Prize will accept applications in ten different languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian.

20 shortlisted artists will be announced in June 2014 and will receive an exhibition at the PinchukArtCentre in Kiev, Ukraine from October 2014 to January 2015. The winner will be announced in December 2014.

Launched by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation in 2009, the Prize is open to all artists up to the age of 35 with the aim of acknowledging and giving long-term support to a future generation of artists from all over the world. The Prize is unique because of its global reach and highly democratic form of application via the Internet.

The winner receives a total of 100,000 USD: 60,000 USD as a cash award, and 40,000 USD towards the production of new work. An additional 20,000 USD is allocated to fund artist-in-residency programmes for up to five special prize-winners.

Traditionally supporting young artists from Ukraine where the PinchukArtCentre is located, Zhanna Kadyrova, the winner of the national prize for young artists in 2013 will also be included into the shortlist of the Future Generation Art Prize 2014, bringing the maximum number of artists in the exhibition to 21.

Jury consisting of prominent curators, directors of museums, artists and experts will be publically announced along with names of 20 artists shortlisted for the Future Generation Art Prize in June 2014.

From its launch the Future Generation Art Prize and its idea to develop a network of young artists worldwide has been supported by its Patron Artists including Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, Andreas Gursky and Takashi Murakami. Besides providing advice and support for the winning artist, Patron Artists also present a solo show in the PinchukArtCentre parallel to the exhibition of shortlisted artists for the Prize. In 2010 and 2012 there were solo shows by Takashi Murakami and Damien Hirst.

A distinguished international Board oversees the Future Generation Art Prize. In addition to chairman Victor Pinchuk and the four Patron Artists, the Board’s membership includes Eli Broad, Dakis Joannou, Elton John, Miuccia Prada and art museum directors Richard Armstrong (Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Museum), Glenn D. Lowry (The Museum of Modern Art),  and Alfred Pacquement (Musée nationale d’art moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou).

50 Partner Platforms representing more than 38 countries will support the application process and the Prize in 2014. It shows how successfully the Prize has extended its global network and range to involve artists from different regions around the world, especially reaching growing regions such as South America, Australia, Africa and Oceania.

Partner Platforms in 2014
Timeline of the Prize
- 13 January 2014            
Artists may begin submitting applications online at www.futuregenerationartprize.org.
-12 April 2014                  
Application deadline
-April–June 2014          
Selection Committee to review applications and decide on a shortlist of up to 20 artists
-June 2014                      
Announcement of shortlisted artists
-October 2014–January 2015        
Exhibition of works by shortlisted artists to open at the PinchukArtCentre, Kiev. The winner of the national PinchukArtCentre Prize will also participate in the exhibition.
-December 2014
Future Generation Art Prize 2014 Award Ceremony
-May–September 2015
Like in 2011 and 2013, it is planned to present Future Generation Art Prize@Venice 2015—exhibition of the shortlisted artists as a Collateral Event program of the 56th Venice Biennale


Contact details for media enquiries:
T +38 044 494 1148 / press@pinchukartcentre.org
General enquiries:
T +38 044 590 0858 / info@pinchukartcentre.org
The press release in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian is available here. 

The Blue Night Art Competition 2014, Open cal for projects

The Blue Night Art Competition 2014
deadline: 16 December, 2013 (date of postal stamp or email)
1. Topic of Invitation
In 2000, the year after Nuremberg’s 950th anniversary, the first Blue Night invited Nuremberg citizens to see and experience art and culture in an unusual setting and at an unusual time of day. Since then, the Blue Night has become Germany’s biggest and most varied Long Night of Art and Culture, with about 140,000 visitors annually, coming from Nuremberg, the surrounding region, the entire Federal Republic and abroad. On offer are more than 250 performances, exhibitions and installations in over 70 institutions, courtyards, on squares and in the streets of Nuremberg’s Old Town.
The Blue Night Art Competition
Since 2005, with its annual art competition, the Blue Night has offered artists the opportunity to present their works (works and projects from the fields of visual arts, such as light installations, movement/performance, interactive activities, new media etc.) to a larger public for one night (maximum 7 hours) in the participating institutions, in courtyards, in enclosed public spaces, and on squares and streets in Nuremberg’s inner city.
N-ERGIE Audience Award
The N-ERGIE Audience Award, including prize money of 5,000 Euros, will be presented for the fourth time at the 2014 Blue Night. It will honor an art project chosen by the Blue Night visitors.
Important information about the Blue Night and the Blue Night Art Competition
Presentation of art projects during Blue Night differs from that in a museum or gallery. The Blue Night is not a “white cube”: “hanging something on the wall” or “putting something in a room” isn’t appropriate for the Blue Night. So, please, no submissions of paintings or sculptures suitable for a traditional exhibition!
- It should be kept in mind that an art project has to work for six hours (important, for example, for performances which might have to be shown several times). Breaks might be possible, but should be relatively short.
- It should also be taken into consideration in the project design and planning that on 3 May, 2014, the sun does not set until 20:37, so it will only be completely dark after 21:00. Projects which only achieve their full impact in complete darkness will either only be shown to advantage for a very short time, or appropriate measures will have to be taken to ensure darkness (e.g. using rooms without windows or windows with blackout), and this should be taken into consideration in the project concept /design and calculation..
Each year there is a different topic for the Blue Night Art Competition as well as for the entire Blue Night programme. For the Blue Night on 3 May, 2014, the topic is “Longing”.
2. Inviting Body / Organiser
City of Nuremberg Department of Culture /Project Office
3. Type of Competition
The competition is an open art competition. An expert jury (see point 4 below) will select a maximum of 12 artists from the entries by mid-January 2014, to implement their projects in the Blue Night on 3 May, 2014.
4. Jury
Pirko Julia Schröder, artist and competition curator
Jochen Flinzer, Professor of Liberal Arts and Art Education, Faculty Director at the Nuremberg Academy of Visual Arts
Verena Waffek, artist and art communicator
Petra Weigle, Institute of Modern Art
Christian Mückl, cultural editor of the newspaper Nürnberger Zeitung
Andreas Wissen, graduate engineer (University of Applied Sciences) and Lecturer at the Nuremberg Academy of Visual Arts
Manfred Krebs, exhibition technician
Andreas Radlmaier, Christel Paßmann and N.N. (City of Nuremberg Department for Culture, Project Office)
5. Advice/Information about all Competition Issues:
Christel Paßmann (project director Blue Night)
Tel: +49 911 231 68 54
Fax: +49 911 231 20 01
E-Mail: christel.passmann (at) stadt.nuernberg.de

Pirko Julia Schröder (curator)
Tel: +49 171-8131663
E-Mail: pirksch (at) t-online.de
6. Competition Address
Kulturreferat der Stadt Nürnberg
Projektbüro
Christel Paßmann
Hauptmarkt 18
90403 Nürnberg
or by email: blauenacht-kunstwettbewerb (at) gmx.de

7. Obligations of Organizers / Artist
The participants or participating groups selected by the jury will receive a fee of 1000 € each (plus applicable VAT, if they are liable to VAT). The fee covers the entire work/performance by the artist/artists’ group (preparation, implementation, set-up and dismantling, as well as presence during Blue Night).
In addition to the fee, costs incurred in the implementation of the work of art up to a maximum of 3000 Euros (inclusive of VAT) will be reimbursed on receipt of an invoice, and after accounts have been inspected. This sum should be understood to include all costs incurred in the preparation before and presentation during the Blue Night (e.g. technicians, transport, infrastructure, electricity, barriers, set-up assistants, possibly security personnel on site etc.).

NB: Neither fee nor implementation costs will be increased to take account of the number of people involved in the project.

A detailed and reliable budget is a vital element of the entry and must be submitted together with the artistic concept. The same applies to the technical design and planning of the concept.
Any material and personnel costs will only be reimbursed within the agreed budget as stated above and upon presentation of proof of payment (receipts, invoices).

When the competition entry is submitted, it should list any technical costs which a sponsor has committed to cover, over and above the agreed budget to be reimbursed by the organizer as stated above. This list should include both additional finance and sponsorship in kind. Before approaching local or regional sponsors (in Nuremberg or the Nuremberg Metropolitan Region respectively), please contact the organizer.

Sponsors may be issued with a donation receipt (and then claim their donation as tax-deductible advertising costs) or they can conclude a sponsorship contract with the organizer.
Sponsorship (both money and sponsorship in kind) collected by the artist will be added to the project budget.
Sponsorship (both money and sponsorship in kind) collected by the organizer will not be added to the project budget of a particular project, but to the overall Blue Night budget.

Expenses for overnight stays and travel as well as other expenses (excluding food) for the artist (and possibly any assistants) must be included in the implementation budget and in the overall budget. (The City of Nuremberg does not reimburse travel expenses and overnight expenses for third parties). The number of assistants requested by the artist must be justified.
All other expenses beyond this must be borne by the artist.

On request, payment of an advance (maximum 500 Euros) may be paid from the implementation cost budget. If any of this advance is unspent, the artist is obliged to pay it back. Expenditure from the advance must be documented with invoices and receipts.

After the project, the organiser will expect to receive a detailed invoice with original receipts attached as proof of payment and use for the project). The Artist’s Contract between organiser and artist will contain information about the form of the invoice and essential information which the invoice should provide. The artist must present an invoice for the entire fee (1000 Euros, plus VAT, if liable to VAT, see above) and the cost of implementation, including his/her tax number and specifying the amount of VAT paid.

The artist is responsible for setting up and dismantling the work of art / art project. On request, the organizer can provide assistance. The cost of auxiliary personnel (currently 7.88 Euros/hour, plus VAT, if liable for VAT) must be part of the cost calculation. If artists have their own auxiliary staff, the same rate (7.88 €) must apply. The cost of their own personnel must also be included in the calculation.
The art works will be exhibited on 3 May, 2014, in the context of the Blue Night from about 7 p.m. to about 1 a.m. (4 May).
8. The Art Venues
The organizer suggests various sites for competition art works (squares, courtyards and other spaces in Nuremberg’s Old Town). In consultation with the organizers, choice of another venue – in the Old Town – may be possible. It is therefore not mandatory to apply for one of the venues named and described in the following, but a description of the necessary prerequisite conditions for the art project (darkness, size of space, enclosed or open space etc.) is essential.
The organizer reserves the right to allocate selected projects to a different venue from the one named in the entry.At most venues, it is not possible to drill holes into the walls or floors!
10. Submission of Entry / Deadline
Entries, including a carefully calculated budget and information about set-up and dismantling, must be submitted no later than 16 December, 2013 (date of postal stamp or email!).
It is possible to apply for several sites.
Entry portfolios must not exceed A2 format. If objects are submitted, they must not be larger than 30 x 30 x 55 centimeters. Entries in digital form are possible and desirable, but should, however, be a maximum of 10 A4 pages (please note file size!).
Please send your entry to the following address:
by post:
Christel Paßmann
Kulturreferat der Stadt Nürnberg/Projektbüro
Blue Night Art Competition
Hauptmarkt 18
90403 Nürnberg
per email:
blauenacht-kunstwettbewerb (at) gmx.de

Do not use any special characters, capital letters or full stops other than the one before the file format extension. Otherwise files may be eliminated by the spam filter.
Personal delivery of the entry is only possible by appointment with the organizer.
11. Selection Criteria
The selection criteria for the 2014 Blue Night, apart from artistic merit of the concept, include the quality of design, the suitability for specific sites and for the event (while staying within the budget).
12. Announcing the Competition Result
By mid-January, 2104, about 12 projects will be selected for implementation during the 2014 Blue Night on 3 May, 2014, in Nuremberg.
All applicants will receive written information concerning the competition result. In their application, applicants must decide whether they want notification by post or by email.
As a matter of principle, the jury does not give any reasons for its decisions!
13. Ownership and Copyright
The selected works of art remain the property of the respective artist. The organizer reserves the right to ownership of parts of the work of art which are needed in the context of its implementation (e.g. technical elements).
The artist permits the organisers, or photographers commissioned by them, to take photographs of the work of art. These photographs will be used for PR work for the Blue Night and for advertising the event.
There will be a separate contract with all artists selected by the jury, relating to the presentation of their work of art during the 2014 Blue Night. This contract regulates important financial, legal, copyright and organisational matters between the City of Nuremberg and the artists selected for the 2014 Blue Night.
14. Entry Costs
Costs of participating in the tour of arts venues (26.10.2013) and of submitting the entry portfolio will not be reimbursed.
Submitted material will be sent back to artists at their own expense (please include sufficient return postage). If no return postage or insufficient return postage is included, entry materials will not be sent back.
15. Liability
Liability issues will be regulated in the Artist’s Contract.

contacts:
Kulturreferat der Stadt Nürnberg / Projektbüro
Hauptmarkt 18
D-90403 Nürnberg
Telefon: +49 (0) 911/ 2 31 68 54
Fax: +49 911 231 - 2001
E-Mail: christel.passmann@stadt.nuernberg.de
Internet: www.nuernbergkultur.de

Bei Fragen zum Ticket-Vorverkauf:
Kultur Information
Königstraße 93
90403 Nürnberg
Tel.: 0911 / 231 40 00
http://www.blauenacht.nuernberg.de