The San Diego Art Prize is an annual award that honors exceptional artistic expression in the San Diego cross-border region from Fallbrook to Ensenada, Mexico. The Art Prize is dedicated to the idea that the visual arts are a necessary and rewarding ingredient of any world-class city and a building block of the lifestyle of its residents. It was conceived to promote and encourage public interest in San Diego's contemporary art scene and engage the community in critical dialogue about our rich and diverse artistic region.
The Art Prize was originally inspired by the Turner Prize which created a BUZZ of interest and excitement for contemporary art in the United Kingdom back in 1986. With this in mind, the San Diego Visual Arts Network (SDVAN) founded the Art Prize in 2006. Since the inauguration of the Art Prize, SDVAN has awarded more than 70K dollars to support and celebrate local artists for their exceptional creative expression which enriches our region.
Traditionally the Art Prize Committee selected established artists who chose emerging artists for the final exhibitions. As of 2020 the Art Prize has eliminated the established and emerging artist designation and will celebrate exceptional artists of merit at any stage in their career.
Artist eligibility guidelines are:
1. Outstanding creativity in exhibitions or other public presentations of art in the last three years.
2. Live/work in San Diego County and Baja Norte region (Fallbrook to Ensenada, East to Tecate).
3. No age restrictions; artists can have a breakthrough at any age.
4. Artists are eligible to win the prize only once.
Each year arts professionals from different sectors of our region's creative ecosystem come together to nominate artists to be considered for the Art Prize. This ensures nominations vary from year to year and come from a broad perspective with fresh insight. Nominations come from the Art Prize Committee, Advisory Committee, the current year's Art Prize winners, the arts professionals invited to write about the winners for the catalogue, and the institution that hosts the prize.
The Art Prize was originally inspired by the Turner Prize which created a BUZZ of interest and excitement for contemporary art in the United Kingdom back in 1986. With this in mind, the San Diego Visual Arts Network (SDVAN) founded the Art Prize in 2006. Since the inauguration of the Art Prize, SDVAN has awarded more than 70K dollars to support and celebrate local artists for their exceptional creative expression which enriches our region.
Traditionally the Art Prize Committee selected established artists who chose emerging artists for the final exhibitions. As of 2020 the Art Prize has eliminated the established and emerging artist designation and will celebrate exceptional artists of merit at any stage in their career.
Artist eligibility guidelines are:
1. Outstanding creativity in exhibitions or other public presentations of art in the last three years.
2. Live/work in San Diego County and Baja Norte region (Fallbrook to Ensenada, East to Tecate).
3. No age restrictions; artists can have a breakthrough at any age.
4. Artists are eligible to win the prize only once.
Each year arts professionals from different sectors of our region's creative ecosystem come together to nominate artists to be considered for the Art Prize. This ensures nominations vary from year to year and come from a broad perspective with fresh insight. Nominations come from the Art Prize Committee, Advisory Committee, the current year's Art Prize winners, the arts professionals invited to write about the winners for the catalogue, and the institution that hosts the prize.
video by Mark Murphy Design
Artwork by PANCA
San Diego Art Prize presented by:
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