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The ZVONO Award – ABOUT

The ZVONO Award – YVVA The Young Visual Artists Award in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) – was established in 2006 by SCCA Sarajevo Center for Contemporary Art. Since 2017 SKLOP is the official partner for the organization of the award in BiH.

The ZVONO Award is realized by SKLOP together with two partner institutions from New York: Residency Unlimited and The Trust for Mutual Understanding.

The contest is announced with an open call in public and social media and is open for visual artists from BiH up to the age of 40.

The ZVONO Award for the award winner consists of a two-months residency in New York at Residency Unlimited and a public presentation of the experiences in NY upon return from the US.

The aim of The  ZVONO Award is to provide support to young creative artists and to facilitate the continuation of their activities by shifting them from the marginal to a central role in the society. This is established by creating a positive context for the young art, creativity, and innovativeness which society could and should identify.

The ZVONO Award is part of  YVVA The Young Visual Artists Award network, consisting of 12 countries from south-eastern Europe (www.yvaawards.org). The award project has been conceived as a new and prestigious point of gathering the most creative forces of the art contemporary scene, locally, where the award is being awarded, but also internationally, in the countries where the award is acknowledged.

The Name of the Award

The name of The ZVONO Award is as a tribute to the artist’s group Zvono formed in Sarajevo in 1982 and active until the outbreak of war in 1992.

Its members were Sead Čizmić, Biljana Gavranović, Kemal Hadzić, Sadko Hadžihasanović, Narcis Kantardžić, and Aleksandar Saša Bukvić, the initiator of the group’s collaborative work and the driving force behind its organization and promotion.

Well-informed about current artistic ideas, not yet accepted and recognized into the infrastructure of the existing art system they started to exhibit and present their works and performances in the most out-of-the-ordinary places: in bars, in the streets, in stadiums and shop-windows. This was, up to that time, the most radical behavior in contemporary art in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Aim of the Award

The aim of The ZVONO Award is to provide support to young creative artists and to facilitate the continuation of their activities by shifting them from the marginal to a central role in the society. This is established by creating a positive context for the young art, creativity, and innovativeness which society could and should identify.

The important features of the award are the openness and the public accessibility of the contest, as well as the accessibility to public scrutiny of the entire organization of the contest for the young artists. The jury composed of experts has to guarantee that the award winner is selected in a fair way, without prejudice, and that the winner decision rests entirely upon professional considerations.

The award project has been conceived as a new and prestigious point of gathering of the most creative forces of the contemporary scene – locally,  where the award is being awarded, but also internationally, in the countries of the YVVA network.

The organizers of the prize are committed to provide opportunities for all participants to make contacts with each other, with the intention to intensify cooperation and exchange of experience among the young contemporary artists from participating countries.

The Organization of the Award

The ZVONO Award is organized by SKLOP together with two partner institutions from New York: Residency Unlimited (RU) and The Trust for Mutual Understand (TMU).

Obligations of the initiation foundation (TMU):
The Trust for Mutual Understanding (TMU) is obliged to bear the costs for the travel and residency to/in New York for the award winner.

Obligations of the residency partner (RU):
The residency partner Residency Unlimited (RU) is obliged to bear the costs for the working space and the organisation of 1-3 encounters a week with curators and artists, as well as for the weekly visits to relevant galleries and museums in NY.

Obligations of the local partner (SKLOP):
The local partner is obliged to bear the costs for the organization of the open call, jury meeting, group exhibition of four finalists, and presentation of the experiences in NY of the award winner upon his/her return from the US.

The Jury

The jury is composed by 5 members from the national and international contemporary art scene. The Jury members are recognized professionals in the field of visual arts (artists, art historians, art critics, curators). They are independent in their decision making. At least two members of the Jury will be exchanged every year.

Selection Process

A jury of established professionals will select four finalists who will present their work in a group exhibition.

Finalists will be selected on the merit of their portfolio, exhibited artwork in the finalists’ exhibition, prior accomplishments and exhibitions, and demonstrated potential.

  • The basis of selection is quality and innovativeness in the works of art created in the last two years.
  • The selection of the award winner is devided in two cycles. In the first cycle the Jury screens all applications and nominations received and selects among them the 4 finalists, whose works will be presented in a curated group show.
    In the second cycle the Jury, composed of the same members, selects the award winner, justifies its choice in a jury statement and announces the winner at the at the opening of the exhibition.
  • The award is awarded to one artist only.
  • The award consists of a 8 weeks residency in New York at Residency Unlimited and a public presentation of the experiences in NY upon return of the award winner from US.

Eligibility

  • The competition is open for visual artists up to 40 years of age.
  • Works of art in the field of painting, sculpture, graphics, drawing, installation, photography, video, new media and performance are considered equally.
  • The award is not concerned with the applied arts, design, theater and film.
  • Visual artists may apply for the contest on their own or can be nominated by institutions, individuals, professionals from the field of the visual arts or other citizens.
  • The candidates need not to be citizens of the award’s country but their artistic development and career must have been formed there. As with emigre artists, they should be members of the artistic community and regularly exhibit in the country.
  • The applicant should have graduated from the Academy/University and have a considerable body of work and exhibitions at home and abroad.

Application process

Currently the call for applications for The ZVONO 2020 is open.

Application deadline: October 31, 2020.

For further informations please visit: Open Call 2020