Sheikha Manal Young Artist Award Winners 2012 Celebrated in UAE
Cash prizes totalling AED185,000 were awarded in Dubai to visual art winners of a competition which aims to encourage, recognize and promote emerging artists from UAE university students.
{jcomments on} FINE ART AWARD
FIRST PLACE went to Oil Painting by American University of Sharjah student Saif Mhaisen, entitled Self Portrait no. 3
SECOND PLACE shared by Zayed University students Nada Khalid Mohammed Al Abdooli’s self portarait in Oil Acrylic and Oil Pastel on Canvas, and Amal Zainal Alkhaja’s Book Structure, A Million Little Pieces.
THIRD PLACE for American University of Sharjah, Ali Aminu Monguno’s Graphite on Cartridge paper project ‘Ailumina Onugommnia’.
PHOTOGRAPHY AWARD
FIRST PLACE ‘May you wake up to a homeland ‘ by American University of Sharjah student, Rasha Dakkak, for Digital Photography
SECOND PLACE for Brown University, USA student Bao-nhat Dinh Nguyen’s photo ‘Raising Rains’
THIRD PLACE is for Digital photography on Epson Art Paper to American University of Sharjah student Arwa Ahmed Ramadan, photo titled ‘Another Nude’
MULTIMEDIA AWARD
FIRST PLACE went to American University of Sharjah student Ali Aminu Monguno who produced a Multimedia Video titled ‘The Innocent’
SECOND PLACE for American University of Sharjah student Omnia El Afifi’s ‘ Sleep Deprivation’ Multimedia Video
The PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD went to American University in Dubai, Nargis Dhirani. Her contribution is From Womb to Webcam, Video Installation
The awarding ceremony was held under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Women Establishment, and His Highness Sheikh Majid Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority and attended by Saeed Al Naboodah, Acting Director General of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, Shamsa Saleh, CEO of Dubai Women Establishment, Muna bin Kalli, Executive Director of Dubai Ladies Club.
During her opening speech, Muna Bin Kalli, Executive Director of the Dubai Ladies Club commented on the growth of the Award; “The Sheikha Manal Young Artist Award was founded by Her Highness Sheikha Manal’s unwavering belief that the visual arts have a place in everyone’s life – that creativity is a precious gift for us all – and that the efforts of high achievers deserve to be encouraged. The arts have proven to enhance a person’s ability to appreciate a world steeped in diversity. And we believe that such art initiatives are essential for building innovative thinkers who will be the worlds’ leaders tomorrow.”
She added, “Now in its seventh year, this year’s competition has seen an impressive number of submissions with more than 500 entries from 22 different nationalities. The huge volume of entries year on year shows us that along with the UAE’s continuous growth and development in various fields, the art community is also thriving and remains a passion for many. The standard of art this year has once again escalated and this exhibition showcases the diversity of visual art forms and young artists that are present within the UAE; further reflecting the valued role that the arts play in creating cultures and building civilizations.”
The winners were selected by a panel of judges from organizations and institutions within UAE such as Khalil Abdulwahid, Visual Arts Manager at Dubai Culture & Arts Authority; Ebtisam Abdulaziz, Emirati artist; Ramin Salsali, Art Collector & founder of The Salsali Private Museum and Rami Farook, Director & Curator of Traffic Gallery.
Khalil Abdulwahid, Visual Arts Manager at Dubai Culture & Arts Authority and the Jury spokesperson said, “Selecting the award winning works from so many quality submissions was an immense challenge. As always, the jury process was the same: blind judging; freedom of expression; and evaluation based on the criteria of originality, technique, and the appearance of a personal vision or voice.”
He added, “The winning works combined excellent craftsmanship with a story that resonated with the judges. A common strength we found was that many of the artists grasped their mediums and applied them wisely. It was very evident that while each artist had a totally different art angle and unique working method, each winning piece extraordinarily displayed the artist’s ability to control the visual languages and displayed the maturity of his or her creations.”
Ten awards, including the People’s Choice Award, were presented by His Highness Sheikh Majid Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, in three categories – ‘Fine Art Award’; ‘Photography Award’ and ‘Multimedia Award’. Each category winner, runner up and second runner up received a cash prize worth AED30,000, AED20,000 and AED10,000 respectively.