The Sovereign Asian Art Prize - The Sovereign Art Foundation

The Sovereign Asian Art Prize was launched in 2003 to increase the international exposure of artists in the region, whilst raising funds for programmes that support disadvantaged children using expressive arts. Held annually, The Prize is now recognised as the most established and prestigious annual art award in Asia-Pacific.

The Prize invites mid-career contemporary artists, nominated by a board of independent art professionals, to each enter up to three artworks online. A judging panel comprised of world-class art experts shortlist the 30 best artworks from a range of digital images. The shortlisted artworks are then exhibited in Hong Kong, where they are judged for a second time and voted on by the public. The Grand Prize Winner receives US$30,000, while the winner of the Public Vote Prize receives US$1,000. The Vogue Hong Kong Women’s Art Prize, launched in 2019 in partnership with Vogue Hong Kong, awards the highest-scoring female artist with US$5,000. The shortlisted artworks, except for The Grand Prize-winning entry, are sold and proceeds are split evenly between the artists and the charity. Artists receive the same split as they would through a gallery, and the artworks often fetch higher prices thanks to generous bidding from charity patrons. The Prize acts as a springboard, enabling many artists to achieve record prices and wider audiences for their work. Notable successes include Adrian Wong, Debbie Han, Haris Purnomo, Jeongmee Yoon, Qi Zhi Long, Rashid Rana and Yang Yongliang, amongst others.

2020 Winners

Alex Seton (Grand Prize Winner)

Saba Qizilbash (Vogue Hong Kong Women's Art Prize Winner)

Made Wiguna Valasara (Public Prize Winner)

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2021 Key Dates

Entry Deadline (nominees only):
19 October 2020

Shortlist Announcement:
15 February 2021

Winner Announcement:
May 2021

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2021 Judging Panel

The Judging Panel for The 2021 Sovereign Asian Art Prize will be announced soon.

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2021 Nominators

The Sovereign Art Foundation works with hundreds of independent arts professionals around the world.

For information about how we select our nominators and criteria for nomination, please contact us.

Afghanistan Nabila Horakhsh

Australia Alan Pigott, Blair French, Claire Richardson, Gene Sherman, Lara Strongman, Liz Nowell, Mikala Tai, Nina Miall, Nina Shadforth, Ross Rudesch Harley

Azerbaijan Suad Garayeva

Bangladesh Mahbubur Rahman, Nadia Samdani, Rajeeb Samdani, Tayeba Begum Lipi, Shawon Akand

Bhutan Pema Tshering

Brunei Hj Osman Mohammad

Cambodia Dana Lamglois, Erin Gleeson, Meta Moeng, Michael Laub, Serey Siv, Vuth Lyno

China Feng Boyi, Gary Mok, Zhenhua Li

Hong Kong Clara Cheung, Doris Poon, Freya Chou, Kurt Chan, Leona Yu, May Fung, Valerie C. Doran, Ying Kwok

India Jeebesh Bagchi, Kerstin Winking, Kriti Sood, Kurchi Dasgupta, Premjish Achari

Indonesia Carla Bianpoen, Sally Texania

Iran Hamidreza Pejman, Maryam Kouhestani

Japan Yuko Hasegawa

Kazakhstan Natalia Muravjeva, Vladislav Sludiskiy