ARSENALE OF VENICE (March 25, 2017) Opening and Awards Ceremony ̶  11th Arte Laguna Prize

From March 25 to April 9 the doors of the Arsenale will open for the finalists exhibition of the 11th Arte Laguna Prize, featuring 125 works from 41 countries: paintings, photographs, installations, videos, digital artworks, land art projects and performances selected by international directors of museums and foundations, art critics and curators.

The opening night of Saturday, March 25 at Nappe Arsenale sees the announcement of the 6 overall winners who will receive a cash prize of 7,000 Euro each and the awarding of more than 30 special prizes from galleries, residencies, festivals and companies. Starting 6:30pm the 5 finalist performances will be staged live; one of them will engage the Venetian women who joined the call to action launched in the last days. The evening will be attended by the international partners of the competition and the firms the Arte Laguna Prize collaborates with every year to create synergies between art and the business world: Deglupta, Eurosystem, Rima, Papillover.

Arte Laguna Prize exhibition in Venice / Courtesy of Art Laguna Prize

CHRISTOPHER BOHA Canada 1978, In my Shoes, 2015, Cast concrete, optical crystal glass, 100x64x200cm / Courtesy of Art Laguna Prize

Among the new elements of the 11th edition of the contest, is the creation of the prize "RRR Paper (Reuse Recycle Reduce) as Art and Design", promoted and developed by the Arte Laguna Prize with the Archives of Sustainability at Cà Foscari University Venice and made with the support of Comieco (National Consortium for the Salvage and Recycling of Cellulose-based Packaging), which called for the submission of works, products and art projects of design, photography, video art and performance that enhanced paper/cardboard and cellulose packaging as part of the RRR strategies (Reuse, Recycle, Reduce). The prize will award 3,000 Euro to the winner.

STEFANO SERAGLIO Vicenza, Italy 1975, Vase and stone that stop the movement of a ball in space, 2016, 350x50x150cm / Courtesy of Art Laguna Prize

INGE VAN HEERDE The Netherlands 1996 - Wood, from the series: Magic Tragic, 2015, Digital photography,100x70cm / Courtesy of Art Laguna Prize

The main exhibition at the Arsenale includes 30 paintings, 30 sculptures and installations, 30 works of photographic art, 10 videos, 10 land art projects, 5 performances; while the historic spaces of the TIM Future Centre host the 10 works of virtual art and digital graphics.

The exhibitions will be open free of charge through Sunday, April 9, every day from 10am to 6pm; you can also learn more about the works on view during the guided tour scheduled for Sunday, March 26: at 11am at the Arsenale, and to follow at 3pm at the TIM Future Centre. Other days guided tours are available by appointment.

The Arte Laguna Prize has received the patronage of the Ministry of Heritage and Culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Veneto Region, the Metropolitan City and the Municipality of Venice, the European Institute of Design, IUAV and Cà Foscari University Venice.