CIRCA has revealed the 30 finalists of the CIRCA PRIZE 2024—a global initiative spotlighting the next generation of creative visionaries. Funded entirely by the sale of #CIRCAECONOMY prints, the winner will be selected by a distinguished jury including Ai Weiwei, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Michèle Lamy and Marina Abramovi?, and will receive a £30,000 prize. An additional £10,000, powered by Piccadilly Lights, will be awarded to the artist with the most online public votes.
Click here to vote.
As arts funding dwindles and opportunities for emerging artists shrink, with recent studies showing that only 2% of global arts funding goes to early-career creators, the CIRCA PRIZE 2024 unearthed over 1,500 applications from across the planet, each a powerful call to break free and envision collective spaces of unrestricted expression.
In response to the CIRCA 20:24 manifesto,‘<<Break Free>> Time’s Arrow Flies Forever Forward’, 30 finalists were selected by an independent CURATORS CIRCLE including Mohamed Almusibli (Kunsthalle Basel, Basel), Attilia Fattori Franchini (Kunstverein Gartenhaus, Vienna), Sydney Fishman (BOFFO, New York), Sohyeon Park (Incheon International Airport Art and Culture, Incheon), and Kostas Stasinopoulos (Serpentine Galleries, London).
Reflecting on the selection process, Stasinopoulos remarked,
It was a challenge and a privilege to work with my colleagues to create a shortlist that reflects the compelling voices of emerging artists from across the globe. The quest for freedom has never been more urgent, and artists have always played a pivotal role in envisioning a liberated and just future. The finalists are not just responding to the world—they are reshaping it.
Deriving from over 20 countries, including Bangladesh, Morocco, the Philippines, Germany, Brazil, the U.K., and the U.S., the 30 final works resonate with a bold summoning, a catalyst for debate, and a profound exploration of freedom and its possibilities. Spanning a broad spectrum of mediums – from performance, AI-generated pieces, animation, short films, poetry and drawing – the 30 finalists offer a diverse tapestry of contemporary perspectives on freedom, going beyond mere human freedom to encompass that of the non-human. Through a cathartic choreography, a metropolitan view through the gaze of a dragonfly or a herd of dogs, raving in an underground club, untamed and tamed horses negotiating their vital space, an Afrofuturist utopia or new digital reality, the 30 finalists encompassing the CIRCA PRIZE 2024 create a collective dialogue challenging our conception of freedom in the Anthropocene.
From 1st–30th September 2024, each finalist will have their work appear at 20:24 BST on London’s iconic Piccadilly Lights, whilst simultaneously broadcasting across a global network of screens in Berlin and Milan (20:24, local time). Presenting a different finalist every evening, this month long showcase celebrating the future of art and culture features the visionary creations of 30 CIRCA PRIZE 2024 finalists, including:
- 1/9: Alina Akbar (British Pakistani, based in Manchester, UK)
- 2/9: Alice Bucknell (UK/US, based in LA)
- 3/9: Bernice Mulenga (British, based in London)
- 4/9: Bhenji Ra (Filipina-Australian, based in Eora/Sydney)
- 5/9: Camille Henrot (France, based in New York City, USA)
- 6/9: Christelle Oyiri-K (French, based in Paris)
- 7/9: Darryl Daley (British, based in London)
- 8/9: Eleni Tomadaki (Greek, based in Greece)
- 9/9: Gabriel Massan (Brazilian, based in Berlin)
- 10/9: H M Baker (UK, based in London/Maastricht)
- 11/9: Ivan Cheng (Australian, based in Amsterdam)
- 12/9: Jala Wahid (British, based in London)
- 13/9: Jazz Grant (Black, mixed, based in Margate, UK)
- 14/9: Jebi Labembika Ndimuntoh (British, based in London)
- 15/9: Jonas Brinker (German, based in Berlin)
- 16/9: Joshua Antiporda Serafin (Philippines, based in Brussels, Belgium)
- 17/9: Josiane MH Pozi (British, based in London)
- 18/9: Laisul Hoque (Bangladeshi, based in United Kingdom)
- 19/9: Maeve Brennan (British/Irish, based in London)
- 20/9: Marianna Simnett (British and Croatian, based in New York City)
- 21/9: Ming Poon (Netherlands, based in Berlin)
- 22/9: Mohamed Sleiman Labat & Matthew Galloway (Sahrawi and New Zealand, based in Sahrawi Refugee Camps, Algeria and Wellington, New Zealand)
- 23/9: Oliver Beer (UK, based in London)
- 24/9: Rebecca Salvadori (Italian, based in London)
- 25/9: Rohan Ayinde + Tayo Rapoport (British, based in London)
- 26/9: Romeo Roxman Gatt & Costas Kazantzis (Maltese, Greek, based in Malta, London)
- 27/9: Sara Cwynar (Canadian, based in New York)
- 28/9: Soumeya Ait Ahmed (Tizintizwa Collective) (Moroccan, based in Casablanca)
- 29/9: Yalda Afsah (Iranian/German, based in Berlin)
- 30/9: Yumna Al-Arashi (Yemen/USA, based in Switzerland)
A prestigious jury, featuring past CIRCA artists and long-time collaborators including Marina Abramovic, Lisa Anderson, Nicoletta Fiorucci, Michèle Lamy, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Josef O’Connor, Kembra Pfahler, Sir Norman Rosenthal, Slawn, Nadya Tolokonnikova and Ai Weiwei, will come together to select the winner of the £30K CIRCA PRIZE. “At a time when arts funding in the UK has been cut by nearly 35%, initiatives like this are more crucial than ever to support creative visionaries.” points out Lisa Anderson, Managing Director of Black Cultural Archives. In addition, an online public vote, powered by Piccadilly Lights, will award an extra £10,000 to the artist who garners the most support. Global audiences are encouraged to view the 30 finalists’ films on circa.art where they can also cast their top three votes to decide the public vote winner, powered by Piccadilly Lights.
This prize is not just about recognizing talent, but about empowering artists to push boundaries and create something extraordinary
Josef O’Connor, Founder and Artistic Director of CIRCA.
The winners will be unveiled at an extended 30-minute award ceremony starting at 8pm in Piccadilly Circus on Tuesday 1st October, ahead of Frieze Week, London.
