Weekly News Roundup: May 31, 2024
By The Editors
MATT ADNATE in front of his portrait Rhythms of heritage, 2024, spray paint and synthetic polymer paint on linen, 220 × 189 cm. Photo by Jenni Carter. Courtesy Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Matt Adnate Awarded Packing Room Prize 2024
On May 30, the Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW) named Australian street artist Matt Adnate as the winner of the 2024 Packing Room Prize, an award selected by the AGNSW staff who receive, unpack, and hang the entries of the Archibald Prize. Adnate beat out 56 finalists with his colorful portrait of Yolŋu rapper, dancer, artist and actor Baker Boy (Danzal Baker), titled Rhythms of heritage (2024). This marks Adnate’s second time as an Archibald finalist, but in winning the Packing Room Prize he will be awarded AUD 3,000 (USD 2,000). The full list of winners of the Archibald, Wynne, and Sulman Prizes 2024 will be made public on June 7, and all finalists’ works will be exhibited at AGNSW from June 8 to September 8, 2024. In August, the Archibald Prize exhibition will begin its tour to five venues across New South Wales and to the Northern Territory, outside Sydney, for the first time.
Exterior rendering of the Eugene Museum’s surrounding area in Nuanu City, 2023. Courtesy the Eugene Museum.
Eugene Museum Opening in Bali in 2026
A new permanent museum dedicated to the work of Japanese-American conceptual artist Eugene Kangawa is slated to open in Bali, Indonesia in early 2026. Named the Eugene Museum and founded by Yunosuke Shigesato, the CEO of Kangawa’s production company, the 3,000-square-meter private institution is set to open in Tabanan, a 44-hectare district on the southern Bali coastline. Renowned Indonesian architect Andra Matin will spearhead the design and plans to construct the museum facade with terracotta bricks hand-crafted by local artisans, as well as use Balinese stone for the flooring. Featuring over 15 gallery spaces, a cafe, a library, and a reading room, the museum will also establish the Eugene Social Program to host workshops and events in collaboration with local communities and educational institutions across Asia. The museum will host over 15 permanent installations and paintings by Kangawa, including a newly commissioned installation that will use magnified cloud molecules to saturate a space with thousands of crystals.
Street view of the Grand Palais in Paris, France. Photo by Aliki Christoforou. Courtesy Art Basel.
Art Basel Paris Reveals Participants
On May 28, Art Basel Paris (formerly Paris+ par Art Basel) announced its list of participants and first highlights for its 2024 edition. The international fair will welcome 194 galleries from 42 countries and territories, with 51 newcomers, including Hong Kong’s Kiang Malingue. Led once again by director Clément Delépine, Art Basel Paris 2024 will be structured into three sections: the main Galeries sector; Emergence, focusing on emerging galleries and artists; and the new addition Premise, of nine galleries’ singular curatorial presentations that will attempt to diversify the art history canon. The initiative Oh La La! will also make its debut featuring rarely seen works from exhibitors on October 18 and 19. Art Basel Paris will take place from October 18 to 20, 2024, with VIP Preview Days on October 16 and 17. The mega fair will take place at the recently renovated Grand Palais on the historic Champs-Élyseés for the first time.
Still image from RAMIN HAERIZADEH, ROKNI HAERIZADEH, HESAM RAHMANIAN’s If I had two paths, I would choose a third, 2020, video. Courtesy the artist.
Jameel Art Prize Announces Shortlist
Saudi Arabia’s independent arts organization Art Jameel has revealed the shortlisted artists for its seventh Jameel Prize, “Moving Images.” Organized in collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London, the prize is designed to award contemporary creatives whose works are influenced by Islamic tradition and culture. The shortlisted artists include: Iraqi multimedia artist Sadik Kwaish Alfraji, Syrian artist and researcher Jawa El Khash, Kuwaiti-Puerto Rican artist Alia Farid, Pakistan-based multidisciplinary artist Zahra Malkani, Kolkata-based artist Khandakar Ohida, Iraqi-Iranian artist Marrim Akashi Sani, and a joint submission by longtime collaborators, Dubai-based artists Ramin Haerizadeh, his brother Rokni Haerizadeh, and Hesam Rahmanian. All of the shortlisted artists work with film, video, and time-based media, in both established and emerging digital technologies. The winner will be announced on November 27, 2024, and finalists’ works will be shown at the V&A from November 30 to March 16, 2025. Thereafter, the exhibition will tour to national and international venues, including to the Hayy Jameel in Jeddah.
Exterior of Ames Yavuz gallery at 114 Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Courtesy Ames Yavuz.
Ames Yavuz Gallery to Open Second Venue
Ames Yavuz, formerly known as Yavuz Gallery, announced that it will open a second gallery space in the Australian suburb of Surry Hills, Sydney on June 14. Ames Yavuz’s new name incorporates the surnames of founder Can Yavuz and partner Glen Ames to reflect their Asia-Pacific and European heritage. The new venue was formerly used as a petrol station in an area formerly home to a rag trade and textiles industry, and will span an area of 300-square meters with three-meter-high ceilings. The gallery’s opening exhibition, “MEMORY/MYTH,” will include contemporary and historic films and video installations by 26 internationally renowned global artists, including 20 works shown for the first time in Australia. Curated by Ames Yavuz’s director Ananya Mukhopadhyay, the program will feature works by South African artist Thania Petersen, Ukrainian artist Stanislava Pinchuk, Kamilaroi/Kooma/Jiman/Gurang Gurang artist Richard Bell, Wiradjuri/Ngunnawal artist Brook Andrew, and British artist Joy Gregory. The show will run until July 6, 2024.
