UOB's art contest returns with hefty cash prizes

UOB's art contest returns with hefty cash prizes

SOCIAL & LIFESTYLE

The United Overseas Bank (Thai) is inviting aspiring and professional Thai artists to enter the 12th "UOB Painting Of The Year" competition to vie for cash prizes worth 1.68 million baht.

The winning piece of the 2010 contest by Pannaphan Yodmanee. photos courtesy of UOB Painting of the Year

Hailed as one of Southeast Asia's most prestigious annual art awards, the competition is divided into categories -- emerging artists who are pursuing an art education or a career in art or those who paint for pleasure and established artists with a portfolio who have shown their works in an exhibition or were represented by a gallery in an art contest or have received an art award.

They are free to create artworks using their own creativity and imagination. There are no restrictions on the mediums and techniques used. They can be acrylic, batik, Chinese brush, collage, crayon, ink, mixed media, oil, or watercolour.

However, each contestant can submit no more than three artworks, each measuring within 180cm in width and length (including frames). They must be original and have been created within two years of the submission date. Moreover, they must have never been used commercially, published or publicly exhibited before.

There are four prizes for each category. The top winner of the established artist category will receive 750,000 baht, plus a chance to represent Thailand in a competition with three counterparts from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in the "UOB Southeast Asian Painting Of The Year" to vie for US$10,000 (313,000 baht) and a residency programme at the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum in Japan.

The painting that helped Sukit Choosri win the 2017 contest. UOB Painting of the Year

The other three winners will be granted 300,000, 240,000 and 150,000 baht. Meanwhile, the top four winners of the emerging artist category will receive 90,000, 75,000, 45,000 and 30,000 baht respectively.

Held for four decades, the UOB POY contest has uncovered more than 1,000 artists across the region. It's a stepping stone for many Thai artists to showcase their works at regional and international art events.

They include Pannaphan Yodmanee, winner of the first UOB POY in Thailand in 2010 who won the distinguished Benesse Prize at the 2016 Singapore Biennale; Thidarat Chantachua, the 2015 winner and the first Thai artist selected to join the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum residency programme; Sukit Choosri, winner of the 2017 UOB competition who exhibited his masterpieces at Art Beijing 2018; and Chaichana Luetrakun, the first Thai artist who won for two consecutive years and is currently working as an affiliated artist at the Russo Yubero Contemporary Art Gallery in Switzerland.

Entries should be submitted via uob.co.th/poy by Aug 15.

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