CELESTE PRIZE 2011, 3rd edition

Last day for prize entries 31 July
Final exhibition and awards in New York in November 2011

6,000 € - Painting Prize
6,000 € - Photography & Digital Graphics
6,000 € - Video & Animation
6,000 € - Installation & Sculpture
6,000 € - Live Media & Performance

The 50 finalist artists will be chosen by a jury and selection comittee of international art critics and curators led by Eugene Tan. Each selector will make his or her personal choices known in public, onsite. Names of selectors will be published no later than end of February.

Winners receive

• Cash prizes totaling 20,000€
• Promotion and exposure by a New York based press office
• Personalised, 2 minute video-trailer for each winner
  
• 150-page catalogue is free for winners

Benefits for Finalists

• Cash reimbursement for travel/transport totaling 10,000 €
• 5 artists invited to an exhibition at the Tria Gallery - New York
• 2 artists invited to a residency in Lecce and Siena (Italy)
• 1 artist invited to a residency in Brooklyn - New York
• Promotion and exposure by a New York based press office
• 150-page catalogue is free for finalists

Benefits for all participating artists

• 2 works in Celeste Prize 2011 - New York
• 2 works in theme exhibitions Producing Censorship - Milan/New York
• 1 photographer at Shipping Minds exhibition, Coimbra, Portugal, 7-28 May
• 4 video works in a video screening at Icon Gallery, Coimbra, Portugal, 28 May
  
• Fonlad Festival, Portugal, exhibition on the UAVM Museum
  
• Student artist receives a free 3 months art course at the Siena Art Institute, Italy
  
• Constant international promotion, thanks to priority filters and special displays
• Facilitated access to over 300 curators and 200 art galleries active in the network
• Hundreds of artists are contacted in Celeste every year with invitations to exhibit
  
  

Final Exhibition, Get to-Know Party, Open Studios in New York

• Invite to a unique Get to-Know Party pre-final exhibition party
• Jurors will introduce works in a tour of 50 finalist works
• Art talk with curators
  
• Brooklyn Open Studios

For more info:http://www.celesteprize.com

Organized by Celeste Network, a web platform in which artists and arts professionals from around the world who share common interests in contemporary art, encourage new projects, and promote their work in a positive and active community of like-minded individuals.

3 Young Contemporaries: Itineraries

Kornkrit JIANPINIDNAN(กรกฤช เจียรพินิจนันท์)

Pratchaya PHINTHONG(ปรัชญา พิณทอง)

Arin RUNGJANG(อริญชย์ รุ่งแจ้ง)

6 - 28 APR 2011

@ VWFA, KUALA LUMPUR

Contemporary attitudes and engagements with internal and external environments

via photography and installation.

CURATED BY: David Teh

*Artist/Curator Talk: Saturday, 9th April, 3pm

ZAC LEE - New Species C-4, March 12 – 28, 2010

Award winning artist, ZAC LEE, develops the series New Species, C-4, with visual vibrancy and humour. The durian, known as the king of fruits is native to SE Asia where the different species are identified through letters and numbers. Lee uses this iconic fruit to make social and political commentary.

His fiction and new species of durian C-4 , embraces references to discord, political struggle and power, through analogies to the characteristics of the fruit; prickly with unpleasant odour , but also delicious and sensual.

Lee’s simple yet powerful concepts coupled with technical digital media, photography and silk screen skills are beautifully executed.

@ KL PAC, The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre , Sentul Park, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Priced between RM 3,500 - RM 5,300
Info: stag@tm.net.my or +603 7958 2185 Shalini Ganendra Fine Art ; or +603 4047 9010 KL Pac.

24th Asian International Art Exhibition (AIAE)

Whoops! We've been so busy with our personal lives we missed this year's Art Expo Malaysia, but you can read all about it on arteri.

Although we do suggest you get your art loving butts down to The 24th Asian International Art Exhibition (AIAE) held at the National Art Gallery from 20 November 2009 - 31 January 2010.

About 250 artists from China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Macau, Mongolia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and host country Malaysia are taking part in this major international exhibition.

Around 100 artists and delegates from the participating countries were in town to attend the 3-day opening programme which include the official opening, art forum and cultural visits. Go to BSLN's site for more info.

PLANTATIONS

Plantations is a solo exhibition launching a new series of oil paintings by yusof majid. these ominous, somber landscapes are a big depature from his last series which was far more naive and whimsical in its outlook

The show looks at different ways we experience landscape both literally, 'being there,' and internally as interior landscapes of memory and imaginings. the show is at Pace Gallery and is open to the public from the 15th October to the 1st November. Admission is free

Watch tower

open space

Returning home

Architect Turned Artist?

Indra Ramanathan is both an artist trapped in an architect’s body and an architect trapped in an artist’s body. His day job places him as the man behind edgy design conscious clients such as BRDB, Sultans Lounge and KL Convention Centre… Always one to push and explore his creative boundaries, Indra's creative and personal journey takes form through paint when his first ever solo exhibition dubbed (sans) Horizon at Pace Gallery opens this Wednesday…

Whatsart caught up with him, his friend;Yeo and Yusof Majid at an… ahem… bar converted from an old barber shop called Super Lady somewhere in Kepong …his pick, but actually a lot less seedy and so offbeat that it was really kinda cool in a Quentin Tarrantino-esque way to get the down low:

How Long Have you been working on your show?

I reckon I’ve been working on it for about 20 years. I used to paint and stopped because I got busy running a commercial practice as an architect, that’s my day job which has taken me all over the world. It’s been a long time coming… But physically, with the studio space and being serious about everything, really in the last 8-9 months… I’ve basically thought about doing this for a long time… trying to transpose my thought process and architecture from 2-d into artforms all my life… I’ve been thinking about doing a body of work ever since I was studying.

Describe your thought process and creative journey for this series

I’m going to be painting for 4 years from this year; ‘9.9.9’, -9 pieces by 9^th, September, 2009; 10.10.10; 10 pieces…. until 2012, and the pieces are all going to be at Pace, and really I think the defining moment, or when I will be taken seriously as an artist would be next year. ‘Cos this year it’s already sold out, it’s gonna happen just because my friends are gonna buy it.

The paintings are about all the places I’ve been, cities that my work has brought me, so this show will contain my journeys through 9 countries… I painted everything together, at the same time, people think I’m crazy, someone told me I should paint them one by one but I was like f*** that I was lining up the canvasses everywhere and painting it all at once. It was a very emotive experience.

My wife has not seen it yet... she is very worried but at the same time looking forward to it.

Yeo: I don’t think any of them would look out of place in a corporate office… He’s genius

How would you describe your style?

Abstract minimalist using layer, over layer, over layers of color that changes as I go along and I stamped it with the airport code of each city… like KUL for Kuala Lumpur. It represents the journey and whatever impressions those cities have left on me… The stories and I could tell you about the hundreds of thing that happened to me which I’ve expressed in these paintings. Emotions that I have no words for.

Yusof: Hey! Say Something about Pace Gallery in there!

What was the catalyst for you guys deciding to do it at Pace Gallery?

Indra: ... just turned forty and I pretty much have everything I want, and I don’t want to miss out on this…opportunity to explore different mediums self expression. I’ve had a blessed life, Thank the Lord … And because Pace has agreed to.

Yusof: trying to sound clever... Because I want to see an architect transfer the monumental, structural thought process documented on a canvas.

Indra: No, really. I like the fact that he moves the emerging, young artists

Have you developed a distinct style or do you intend to work towards developing one?

At this stage I would say no

Are you a collector yourself?

I have about 30 pieces… Khalil, a lot of Sabree, I have a few new UITM grad works, Wei Ling, it’s very varied.

Anyone you’re particularly drawn to?

I appreciate all art forms

See Indra Ramanathan pull off his solo exhibition this wednesday, 9th September 2009 at 9pm, Pace Gallery or watch this space...

Because it's True... and Funny

Busted! This is so obviously a filler.... But it's so funny I thought I'd share
note to self: must post Pace Anniversary show soon