Art What!: The 2022 Sovereign Asian Art Prize Winners Announced, Azin Zolfaghari Named Grand Prize Winner

The Sovereign Art Foundation (SAF) announces Iranian artist Azin Zolfaghari as the Grand Prize winner of The 2022 Sovereign Asian Art Prize with a cash prize of US$30,000 for her work, Density (2021), a mixed media work of a desolate building façade.

Faezeh Baharloo, also of Iran, is awarded the Vogue Hong Kong Women’s Art Prize of US$5,000 for her work, Untitled 1 (2021), an acrylic painting exploring humankind’s relationship with the natural world. The awards were announced live last night at Art Central by Tiffany Pinkstone, Director of SAF; Desiree Au, Publisher of Vogue Hong Kong; and Ying Kwok, a member of the Prize judging panel. The Prize is the 18^th edition of Asia’s longest established and most prestigious award for contemporary art.

Winner Azin Zolfaghari’s practice is characterised by unusual cityscapes depicting muted slabs of bleak façades with minimal signs of life. Her ambiguous works leave audiences wondering what the inside of the structure may hold. Density is an embodiment of the complicated definition of “home” which according to the artist, despite its objective clarity, is a fluid concept that does not fit neatly into any physical form.

The Finalists Exhibition is currently being presented at Art Central in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, through 29 May 2022. All artworks, except Zolfaghari’s, are available for sale via auction (closing at 6pm HKT on 29 May 2022) or can be purchased immediately at a fixed price, either in person at Art Central or by contacting sales@sovereignartfoundation.com. Auction details and artwork prices are available on SAF’s website. Proceeds are split evenly between the artists and SAF’s charitable programmes for disadvantaged children.

Visitors are invited to cast a vote for their favourite artwork, the most popular of which will be awarded the Public Vote Prize of US$1,000. Online votes can also be cast on SAF’s website until 6pm HKT on 29 May 2022. The winning artist will be announced on 2 June 2022 on SAF’s social media channels.