Galerie Mingei is holding its first MINGEI BAMBOO PRIZE competition.

Eleven works have been selected and will be exhibited at the Musée national des arts asiatiques - Guimet from October 21st through March 1st 2021.

Galerie Mingei has been championing the Japanese wickerwork and bamboo arts for ten years, and has established itself as the first and virtually only European gallery with this area of specialty.

Japanese wickerwork objects are the fruits of a long tradition of bamboo weaving, and have been attracting an ever-increasing number of collectors in recent years. They have risen to the status of highly acclaimed artworks, and have been seen at major institutions, most notably the Musée du Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac, in an exhibition titled “Fendre l’Air, Art of Bamboo in Japan” (November 27th 2018 through April 7th 2019) which Galerie Mingei actively participated in producing.

Promoting the continued and enduring recognition of this art and encouraging contemporary creation are Galerie Mingei’s main objectives as it sets out to award an annual prize. The competition for this prize is open to all Japanese artists regardless of age, and particularly to those who use bamboo as their medium. Artists may also enter the competition as many times as they wish.

A call for submissions was launched in Japan in September of 2019, and twenty-seven artists responded. In mid-April 2020, a pre-selection based on the criteria of technical mastery, innovation and creativity was made using photographs.

Although the world of bamboo has traditionally been predominantly male, it is interesting to note that three of the eleven finalists’ works selected were created by young women.

The 2020 jury will meet at Musée national des arts asiatiques - Guimet on January 26th and is made up of:

Honorary President:
1 - Sophie MAKARIOU
President of the Musée national des arts asiatiques - Guimet

Members of the Jury
2 - Caroline ELIACHEFF
Child psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, essayist and collector

3 - Sheila HICKS
Internationally known textile artist

4 - Monique LEVI STRAUSS
Author and textile history researcher

5 - Alfons-Jean KNAUF
Collector

6 - David LEBARD
Business executive and collector, and member of the administrative council of the Friends Society of the Musée du Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac

7 - Philippe BOUDIN
Director of Galerie Mingei

The viewing public will also have the opportunity to vote between October 21st and January 26th using a QR code system for the PRIX DU PUBLIC GUIMET - MINGEI