The MASP Visual Arts Award, considered one of the largest monetary awards in Brazil, announced last July 12th the three winners of its second edition.
The winners are: Regina Silveira in the category "Whole Oeuvre"; Odires Mlászho, selected "Artist of the Year 2012-2013"; and Rodrigo Braga, as "Emerging Artist". Silveira and Mlászho will receive R$200,000 each, and Braga will receive $R70,000.
The jury was presided by Teixeira Coelho and Luis Pérez-Oramas, curator of the 30th São Paulo Biennial and adjunct curator at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City; Mari Carmen Ramírez, Latin American Art curator at the Museum of Fine Arts-Houston; Marcio Doctors, curator at Eva Klabin Foundation in Rio de Janeiro; and Ricardo Resende, Director of the São Paulo Cultural Center.
Regina Silveira, a nationally and internationally renowned artist, was the winner in the "Whole Oeuvre" category for her work in photography, video, and installation. In their award communiqué, the jury states: "Regina Silveira's work, in its entirety, represents an extraordinary summa of achievements where the excellence of her formal mastery and the acute intelligence of her contents constitute a faultless and cohesive unity whose great political and social relevance has no peers in contemporary artistic production (…). At the same time, the Nomination Committee for MASP Award 2013 sees in Regina Silveira's oeuvre a response to a contemporary social crisis that is urgently expressed in current Brazilian politics."
Odires Mlászho, one of Brazil's representatives at the 55th Venice Biennale, was named "Best Artist" in the exhibition Zero Substantivo. His work consists of experimentations with typography, collages, and sculptures.
The work of Rodrigo Braga moves between performance photography, and video, expressing a strong connection to the natural world. Braga participated in the recent 30th edition of the São Paulo Biennial and the Cerveira Biennial in Portugal. In 2012 Braga won the Pipa Visual Arts Prize in the category Exhibitions-Audience Choice, and has been the recipient of other recognitions and residencies.
The second edition of the MASP Visual Arts Award was supported by Banco Itau. The awards ceremony will be held during the second semester of 2013. The award concession includes an exhibition at MASP of works by the award recipients, slated for late 2013 and early 2014.
Source: Mapa das Artes, Estadão São Paulo, Galeria Luciana Brito