International law firm Ashurst and Oaktree & Tiger Gallery are pleased to announce the winners of the Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize 2016. The prize has been hugely successful in its second year receiving more than 1,890 artworks by over 740 artists. The shortlist included artists from Europe, Iran, China, India, South Africa, North, Central and South America who work across sculpture, painting, photography and other art forms.
The winning artist, Mirjam Siim, is a Estonian artist based in Portugal, whose submission The River of Life will see the artist receive £3,000 and a solo show at the Emerging Artist Gallery in Ashurst’s London office between July and September. This year the Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize announced an additional prize for sculpture with a £1,000 award and exhibition. This goes to Maureen Jordan, a Northern Irish artist for her work Stains – an installation piece featuring stained glass fragments set within a reclaimed bedframe.
The Employee Choice Award, which invited Ashurst employees across the firm’s international network of offices to vote on their favourite artwork, goes to Eirik Broll Stalheim. Norwegian-born Eirik is a contemporary realist painter who will receive the £1,500 cash prize and a solo show.
Highly commended mentions go to artists Kyveli Anastasiadi, whose highly original work merges the worlds of architecture, performance, sculpture and cognitive science; Iranian artist Maryam Deyhim, whose oil pastel on paper shows a multitude of characters mixed in an harmonious commune of humanity; and Katherine Russell, whose painting attempts to deconstruct mass media imagery.
The prize is also supported by the UK’s leading independent art supplies retailer, Cass Art, who are giving a £500 gift voucher to the winner of the Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize to spend on art supplies, and £250 gift voucher for both the Sculpture Prize and Employee Choice Award.
Ashurst’s Chief Marketing Officer, Lisa Worley, said: “This year’s Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize was outstanding and we congratulate the winners and all the entrants on their inspiring range of artworks. We are incredibly proud of the success the Prize has achieved so far and it is our aim to continue supporting the ambitions of promising emerging artists.”
Conrad Cavalho, Prize Director and Gallery Director at Oaktree & Tiger, said: “The aims and success of the Prize have brought great attention from art professionals searching for the next big artists, and it isn’t just the winners that are being offered much sought-after opportunities, many entrants are being discovered.”
The Prize builds on the success of the Ashurst Emerging Artists initiative, launched in November 2013 to support and mentor up and coming artists and provide them with a platform to showcase their work. Since the launch, the Prize has seen a variety of artists working across different mediums successfully exhibit in the Emerging Artists Gallery at the firm’s London office, gaining exposure to a wide and varying audience.
The Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize is complemented with talks providing practical guidance for artists, and an extensive social media presence promoting all entrants, in order to benefit as many participating artists as possible.
Images: Left Stains Maureen Adams Found bed frame, stained glass, light, installation
Right: The River of Life Mirjam Siim Watercolour on paper