The nine nominees for the Piket Art Prizes, the award for young, talented artists in painting, dance, and theater, were announced recently. “The jury, composed of professionals from The Hague arts scene, has once again made a surprising and diverse selection for this year’s awards, with a superb selection of promising talents, many of whom are already well on their way to successful careers in the arts. Piket Art Prizes is therefore pleased to give all nine nominees an extra financial and publicity boost to help them reach their full potential,” says director Marie Jeanne de Rooij.
The awards will be presented on Monday evening, November 10th, at the Theater aan het Spui in The Hague.
Livia Claesson, Jemima de Jonge, and Carmen Roca Igual have been nominated in the Painting category; Chandenie Gobardhan, Giulo Hoxhallari, and Annabel Koele have been nominated in the Dance and Kollektief op Kracht categories; and Hélène Vrijdag and Mike Zanting have been selected by the professional jury in the Theater category. “It feels special that my work is being noticed and appreciated,” says Jemima de Jonge. “The nomination also gives me peace of mind, because it comes with a generous amount of money that I can invest in my development.”
Actor Mike Zanting is “surprised and touched” by the nomination. “It’s truly special to be seen and recognized so soon after graduating. It’s a tremendous honor,” says Mike. “This nomination feels like encouragement. That you shouldn’t give up, that you’re on the right track, and that your work matters.” Dancer and choreographer Chandenie Gobardhan sees the nomination as an incentive. “It motivates me to continue creating, exploring, and sharing with even more confidence and curiosity. I feel grateful that my work, which often moves between worlds and is sometimes difficult to categorize, is being noticed within this field.”
From left to right: Annabel Koele, Carmen Roca Igual, Chandenie Gobardhan, Giulio Hoxhallari, Hélène Vrijdag, Jemima de Jonge, Kollektief op Kracht, Livia Claesson and Mike Zanting. Photo: Eliza-Sophie Sekrève/juv
The jury
A professional jury, chaired once again this year by Majel Blonden, director of pop venue Paard, annually seeks out talented young artists with ties to The Hague. This year’s jury consists of visual artist Pietertje van Splunter, Johan Gustavsson (Experimental Art Space 1646), Erik Kaiel (dance collective Arch8/Theater Rotterdam), Mitchell-lee van Rooij (Korzo), and the new Toneel jury members Joep Hendrikx (Poezieboys) and Nadine van Pinxteren (Het Nationale Theater, de Parade).
The Piket Art Prizes jury members lined up. From left to right: Jury chair Majel Blonden, Mitchell-lee van Rooij (Dance), Johan Gustavsson (Painting), Pietertje van Splunter (Painting), Nadine van Pinxteren (Theater), Joep Hendrikx (Theater), and Erik Kaiel (Dance) in the foreground. Photo: Dana LaMonda
Award Ceremony
The jury will select three main winners per discipline (Painting, Dance, and Theater). They will receive a cash prize of €6,000. The other nominees will receive a cash prize of €3,000. In addition, all nominees will receive an award, the Hammer, designed specifically for the Piket Art Prizes by renowned artist Joep van Lieshout.
About the Piket Art Prizes
The Piket Art Prizes have been awarded since 2014 to young artists who have a connection to The Hague, either because they have flourished there or because their work makes a stimulating contribution to The Hague’s cultural scene. Their namesake, Frederik Hendrik Piket (1927-2011), a lawyer and member of the Senate for the CHU (later CDA), was a great lover of art and culture. After his death, a foundation was established to annually reward promising professional artists under the age of 30 with a prize.
More information (in Dutch): https://www.piketkunstprijzen.nl
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