ARTIST OF THE YEAR – 2022 WINNERS
ITSLIQUID Group is pleased to announce the WINNERS of the ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2022, a competition open to anyone and established to increase and develop the art market and the dialogue between collectors, art critics, journalists and art lovers. Making contemporary art accessible to all.
Artworks have been judged based on creativity, originality, quality of work, and overall artistic ability. Winners have been chosen based on the quality of a single entry as well as the quality of overall work.
Winners 2022
Andrew Soria . USA
Ariel Palanzone . Argentina
Dirk Rees . Sudafrica
Janet Schwartz . USA
Katja Lührs . Germany
Michael Cheung . China
Ruri Matsumoto . Japan
ARTIST OF THE YEAR – 2022 Winners
Andrew Soria . USA
Life’s journey is about attaining the idea of wholeness and perfection. We are constantly trying to reach the top and always wanting more, however, we can never achieve absolute perfection. We must accept the good with the bad; that there is no one perfect thing. The quest for happiness and the feeling of being whole relies on oneself. While we constantly try to fill the void to feel whole, we must stay clear on our paths and avoid the distractions that life throws our way. Once we realize the gifts we already have and keep a calm clear mind, only then will we reach true “perfection”. My works represent life’s journey; the need to feel whole, and the good with the bad; they are reflections of life itself.
Ariel Palanzone . Argentina
My name is Ariel Palanzone, I am a designer and multidisciplinary artist. I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1987 and I graduated as a graphic designer at the University of Buenos Aires in 2013. My style is somewhat unclassifiable since it is eclectic, experimental, restless, curious and in constant mutation. My techniques range from digital art, drawing, photography, and even sculpture and collages. In some of my works, I emphasize composition and morphological searches, while in others there is a more reflective, existentialist and conceptual.
Dirk Rees . Sudafrica
His passionate and experimental approach to image-making has defined his creative style in the industry, collaborating with leading ad agencies and brands all over the world. Dirk’s love for connecting with people and creating an authentic narrative has seen him capture the human form at its most compelling moments, studying the diversity and intricacies of identity throughout cultures, dance and movement. His Afro-European perspective and passion for travel have fuelled extensive exploration around the world, aiding the constant development of his creative approach in both personal and commission work. Dirk’s projects have gained international recognition in numerous awards such as the Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize, American Photography Awards, Communication Arts Award and the AOP.
Janet Schwartz . USA
Janet’s love of the arts began when she was five years old. Her mother recognized her talent and enrolled her in the Tampa Art Institute which has since merged with the Tampa Museum of Art. “I can still picture myself having the best time sitting at the long table and creating my works of art.” She always had a pencil and paper in hand and continued to draw through her elementary school years. Her talent was recognized when her drawing was selected as part of a newspaper article in the Tampa Bay Tribune on the Girl Scout summer camp, “I began Girl Scouts at a very young age and continued through high school. My mother was the troop leader in the early years. While my father was in the Air Force at MacDill AFB I would pick out the choicest spot for cookie sales at the gate where the enlisted men exited from work.”
Katja Lührs . Germany
The variety of colours and shapes of flowers, trees and leaves has fascinated me since I was a child. The power of the sun and its play with light and shadow in nature are characterized by: “grace – joy of life – confidence – peace and serenity”. With pictures, you can capture the beauties of nature. Because what you love, you also protect. Therefore, my motto for my pictures is: “Save the earth!”.
Michael Cheung . China
Michael Cheung (Chinese name: 張卓榮) is a Chinese contemporary artist living and working in Hong Kong. He is specialized in abstract painting and figurative painting. Growing up in the former British Colony – Hong Kong where East meets West, Michael is influenced by both Oriental and Western culture. His approach is edgy, sophisticated and creative one that understands the value of good art. His art creation is deeply embedded within perception, memory, identity and communication in contemporary life.
Ruri Matsumoto . Japan
Perspective and color visual effects are important themes in my paintings. The space depicted in the work is a place that is related to me or a fantasy space. I perceive space and try to express it with colors.
ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2023
ITSLIQUID Group officially presents ARTIST OF THE YEAR, a competition open to anyone and established to increase and develop the art market and the dialogue between collectors, art critics, journalists and art lovers. Making contemporary art accessible to all.
The winner will be awarded as ‘Artist of the Year’, will be represented by ITSLIQUID Group for one year and will take part in some selected exhibitions in Venice, Rome and London ITSLIQUID Galleries during 2024. The winner will be featured and interviewed on ITSLIQUID Platform, promoted extensively worldwide and considered for any upcoming curatorial projects of ITSLIQUID Group.
Click here to read more.
ABOUT US
ITSLIQUID is a web-based information platform, founded in 2001 by Luca Curci, dedicated to the worldwide distribution of information about calls for entries, exhibitions and events at some of the world’s leading art galleries, museums and foundations selected. ITSLIQUID has already built a readership of more than 250.000 qualified subscribers. Among them architects, designers, artists, collectors, art critics, curators, dealers, and other personalities of the International art, architecture and design world. It provides advertising services, press office services for events and projects, articles and specials published on the website, media partnerships services.
During the last 20 years, ITSLIQUID Group has become a cultural hub between creatives, exhibition spaces and art lovers. Among our international partners, Art Now Fair, Art Vancouver, Design Tokyo, INDEX Qatar, INDEX Saudi, The Big 5 Construct Dubai, The Big 5 Construct Qatar, Photo LA Los Angeles and international magazines like Art Style. ITSLIQUID Group supports some of the most important no-profit organizations, like UNFCCC – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, SSCS – Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, One Tree Planted, The Ocean CleanUp and Plastic Oceans, with the goal to increase public awareness about environmental issues. Click here to find out more.
ITSLIQUID GROUP includes a section dedicated to the organization of international art events, managing exhibitions of painting, photography, video art, installation and performance; it organizes solo and collective shows, art residencies and international contests. Its object is to use new technologies to globalize the language of art, to connect artists working in every part of the world.
ITSLIQUID Group manages a variety of art spaces all over the world; among them THE ROOM Contemporary Art Space in the heart of San Marco Square in Venice and different historical buildings, THE LINE Contemporary Art Space in London city centre and other different partners worldwide. Since its beginning, the group has organized more than 250 events all around the world, involving more than 5.000 artists, in more than 60 international venues in Italy, the USA, Canada, the UK, Spain, France, etc. Most of the last events have been realized in museums (CCCB – Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona in Spain, NCCA – National Center for Contemporary Arts in Moscow, etc.), galleries and private foundations.
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