The Vincent Award, one of the most prestigious prizes for contemporary art in Europe, has been cancelled this year after two artists pulled out—one citing a legal row between the Danish-Vietnamese artist Danh Vo and the Dutch art collector Bert Kreuk.
The Berlin-based Iranian artist Nairy Baghramian and the German artist Jutta Koether withdrew from the award in January, less than two months after the five shortlisted artists were announced. While Koether said her decision was “a personal matter”, according to Hyperallergic, Baghramian cited the legal dispute. The case, which was settled in December, centred on a work by Vo that was exhibited in a show organised by Kreuk at the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague. The museum has organised and hosted the Vincent Award since 2014.
In a letter to the award’s committee and jury members, published in Hyperallergic in January, Baghramian wrote: “Even though I’m aware that the Vincent Award is independent from the Gemeente Museum Den Haag, where the exhibition of all [works by] nominees will take place this time, I have to question the involvement of the museum in the law case between the artist Danh Vo and the collector De Kreuk.”
In a statement, the international jury said the withdrawals from the award “precipitated a lot of discussion about this particular dispute, which the museum merely witnessed; it was never party to the dispute”. It continued: “The jury believes the recent discussion has overshadowed the intention of the award and could eventually compromise the nominated artists. After close consultations with the Broere Foundation, the jury has decided to cancel the Vincent Award 2016.” The next edition of the prize is due to take place in 2018.
The jury members of the award are: Sabine Folie, an independent curator based in Vienna; Hubertus Gassner, the director of the Hamburger Kunsthalle; Julia Peyton-Jones, the outgoing co-director of the Serpentine Gallery in London; Jaroslaw Suchan, the director of the Muzeum Sztuki, Lodz, Poland; and Benno Tempel, the chairman and director of the Gemeentemuseum who also testified in the legal case between Kreuk and Vo.