On 2 June, 2024, the Tenth Edition of the International Awards for Art Criticism was formally launched at the CAFA Art Museum in Beijing. The Awards are open to all entries in English and Chinese, worldwide. The organisations participating in the IAAC 10 include the School of Philosophy at Fudan University and Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum Community, Royal College of Art, Edinburgh College of Art and the International Association of Art Critics.
At the launch event, Board members Lewis Biggs and Ling Ming addressed their thanks to the participating organisations, on behalf of the IAAC’s Organising Committee. They stated that: ‘IAAC aims to provide a common platform for outstanding critical writing in Chinese or English from all over the world. Our high visibility affords access for as many people as possible to a wide range of excellent critical writing via international social media and an annual bilingual publication of outstanding entries to the competition.’
We focus on the latest developments in artistic practice and theory. Each year, the IAAC’s Committee appoints a fresh international jury of five highly qualified experts to adjudicate the final round of the competition in Shangahi. It also guarantees the strict anonymity of competitors throughout the entire process of adjudicating the entries. All exhibitions reviewed must have taken place within the previous twelve months. In this and other ways we encourage and develop the cultural environment through better quality criticism of contemporary art exhibitions.’
Professor Sun Xiangchen, from the School of Philosophy at Fudan University and co-chair of the IAAC’s Organising Committee said: ‘IAAC provides a platform for these vastly different perspectives to converge on the same stage. Reading so many art reviews is a magical experience and helps us traverse the gaps in time and catch a glimpse of the other side of the world. In the recent past we keenly felt the harshness that can envelope the world, yet we still experienced the warmth of life. Through a series of global upheavals such as the pandemic there have been changes, but also constants. Contemporary art always maintains a critical attitude towards the world, but sustaining this criticism also requires enduring friendships and individual perseverance. IAAC represents a kind of perseverance, and we hope this event will continue to persist. When people look back, it will become a unique way for us to understand and record this era.’
As one of the main organisers of IAAC 10, Hou Zhe, Deputy Managing Director of the Shanghai JUCE Culture and Media Co. Ltd. said: ‘The global art world is experiencing unprecedented changes nowadays, it brings new ways of creating art and showing it. In addition, it proposes new conditions and challenges to art criticism. At Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum, the collection and display of distinguished artworks has enabled us to build a strong educational foundation for promoting public awareness and appreciation of art through a variety of academic activities and public education programmes. While critics rethink about the form and circulation of art, they also look for enlightened perspectives and new methodologies for interpreting the artworks. This is exactly why it is so important for the Tenth International Awards of Art Criticism to maintain their independence and worldwide influence.’
The Tenth Edition of the International Awards for Art Criticism (IAAC 10) 2024, is open to candidates from anywhere in the world writing in Chinese or English about any contemporary art exhibition held anywhere in world or on-line between 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2024. Candidates are invited to write a fresh, previously unpublished review of 1,500 words or 2,500 Chinese characters on any exhibition of contemporary art within a strict limit of plus or minus ten per cent.
The First Prize will consist of a cash award of 10,000 Euros (pre-tax) or the RMB equivalent of this amount (currently, around 80,000 RMB). Each of the three Second Prizes will be awarded a cash prize of 3,500 Euros (pre-tax) or the RMB equivalent of this amount (currently, around 30,000 RMB). Around 20 entries (10 in English, 10 in Chinese) will be selected by first-round juries in Shanghai and London and translated for the bilingual publication, Exhibition Reviews Annual 10, in 2025.
The objectivity of the selection process is underpinned, both by the recognised professionalism of the Chinese and English-speaking jury members and by the strict anonymity of the judging process. The members of the final, international jury for 2024 will comprise: Cristiana Collu, Italian museum director, independent curator, art historian and lecturer；DU Keke, Editor of Artforum China, writer and translator；Gerardo Mosquera, Independent curator, critic and writer based in Havana and Madrid；Małgorzata Kaźmierczak, International President of AICA, Ph.D. in History, art critic, independent curator and academic based in Kraków, Poland; YOU Mi, Professor of Art and Economies at the University of Kassel / documenta Institut.
The awards are open to all. There is no age limit and we welcome entries from individuals representing a wide range of backgrounds from anywhere in the world, writing in Chinese or English. All candidates are invited to log in to the official IAAC website, www.iaac-m21.com, enter the relevant details and upload their review and any accompanying images, up to a limit of three. They may then return to the site to add or alter information at any time up to the deadline for submissions.
Closing date for entries：15 September 2024
Contact
Chinese-language:
School of Philosophy, Fudan University
Address: 220 Handan Road, Shanghai (Room 2308, West Main Building, Guanghua
Building)
Tel: +86 21 6564 2732
Email: philo.fudan@gmail.com
English-language:
Edinburgh College of Art, the University of Edinburgh
Address: Lauriston Place, Edinburgh EH3 9DF
Tel: +44 (0)20 7590 4423
Email: IAAC@ed.ac.uk