The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize 2024 Finalists Exhibition Opens at Norval Foundation

Norval Sovereign African Art

On 13 February 2024 Norval Foundation and The Sovereign Art Foundation (SAF) will be unveiling the finalists’ exhibition for The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize 2024 (NSAAP), the third iteration of the annual prize for contemporary artists from Africa and its diaspora. This private event will form part of the VIP programming for the annual Investec Cape Town Art Fair. The exhibition will then open for viewing by the public from 14 February – 12 May 2024.

The NSAAP celebrates and rewards the practices of leading contemporary artists and aims to benefit them by increasing their exposure to an international audience. The selected Grand Prize Winner is awarded a cash prize of US$35,000, the opportunity for a solo exhibition at Norval Foundation as well as an artist residency in London supported by Outset Contemporary Art Fund. A Public Vote Prize of US$2,000 is awarded to the artist whose artwork receives the most votes from the viewing public, either in person at the exhibition or through the online gallery.

The NSAAP is primarily a fundraising initiative aimed at raising funds for both the Norval Foundation Learning Centre and the shortlisted artists, via an online benefit auction hosted by Sotheby’s. Over the course of this year’s auction, which will run from 13 – 20 Febrary 2024, all shortlisted artworks (except the Grand Prize winning work) will be sold and proceeds split evenly between the artists and the Norval Foundation Learning Centre. The Learning Centre is dedicated to fostering creative thinking and developing the problem solving and interpretation skills that enable young learners to make better life decisions,and the majority of these learners come from underresourced communities. The Learning Centre exposes and educates learners through art, stimulating the development of these skills.

The Exhibition will showcase the artworks from 27 finalists representing 17 countries across Africa and its diaspora, including South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and others. The finalists artworks, which include painting, mixed media, sculpture, and photography, were shortlisted from a total of 375 entries by a judging panel of five world-class art specialists, namely: Ashraf Jamal – Writer and Researcher, ArtBankSA and University of Johannesburg; Heba El Kayal –Curatorial Consultant, Marie-Ann Yemsi – independent Exhibition Curator and Contemporary Art Consultant; Ngaire Blankenberg – Founder and Director, Institute for Creative Repair; and Sean O’Toole – Writer, Editor and Curator.

As part of the Investec Cape Town Art Fair Programming, the Exhibition Opening and winners announcement event will be an invite-only occasion for VIP guests of the ICTAF, as well as the finalist artists and their nominators.

Previous winners of The NSAAP include Famakan Magassa (b.1997, Mali), Bonolo Kavula (b.1992, South Africa), Alioune Daigne (b. 1985, Senegal) and Rene Tavares (b. 1983 São Tomé and Principe).

The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize 2024 Finalists’ Exhibition is curated by Seth Kriger.