Dubai Culture and Bulgari announce inaugural contemporary art award jury members

Eight prominent figures from the worlds of culture, art and design have been named jurors of the Bulgari Contemporary Art Award

Beatrice Bulgari, president of Fondazione In Between Art Film, Hala Badri, director general of Dubai Culture, and Jean Christophe Babin, chief executive of Bulgari Group, are among the jurors of the inaugural Bulgari Contemporary Art Award. Photo: Dubai CultureShow less

The jury members of the inaugural Bulgari Contemporary Art Award have been revealed.

Eight prominent figures from the worlds of culture, art and design have been named jurors of the first edition of the annual award, which is organised by Dubai Culture and the luxury brand Bulgari.

These include university professor Davide Rampello, who is also cultural adviser and curator of the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai; Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, an Italian-American author and director of Castello di Rivoli Contemporary Art Museum in Turin; Hou Hanru, artistic director at MAXXI (National Museum of XXI Century Arts in Rome); and Emirati artist Mattar Bin Lahej.

The committee also includes Hala Badri, director general of Dubai Culture; Jean-Christophe Babin, chief executive of Bulgari Group; Lucia Boscaini, brand curator at Bulgari; and Beatrice Bulgari, an Italian film producer and president of Fondazione In Between Art Film.

The first Bulgari Contemporary Art Award coincides with Expo 2020 Dubai, for which Dubai Culture is the official culture sponsor, and is presented with the support of the Italy Pavilion at the Expo.

Hala Badri, director general of Dubai Culture speaking during a July press conference announcing the Bulgari Contemporary Art Award. Pawan Singh / The National

The award will have three categories in visual arts: drawing and painting, photography and sculpture.

The candidates will be chosen from Dubai Culture’s database of artists, with UAE residents and nationals able to apply. The proposed works must be created specifically for the award and must use colour to express “how beauty connects people”, as the organisers describe it.

Dubai Culture will accept applications until mid-December 2021, with winners announced in February 2022.

Three to five nominees for each category will be named by the jurors and a yet-to-be-named judging panel from Dubai Culture and Bulgari.

The selected artists will be able to attend online lectures and workshops with Bulgari to learn about its craftsmanship of gemstones.

The winning works will be displayed at the Italy Pavilion throughout the duration of Expo 2020 Dubai. Winners will be taken on a week-long trip to Rome to visit Bulgari’s jewellery ateliers, as well as other design centres and museums.