The 59th Venice Biennale, which opened on April 23, presented the awards — gold and silver lions.
Venice Biennale winners announced
Most of the winners this time are women. “Golden Lion” for the national pavilion went to the United Kingdom, which presented the installation “Feeling her way”; artist Sonya Boyce. The project brings together video works featuring five black female musicians of different generations: Poppy Ajuda, Jacqui Dankworth, Sophia Jernberg, Tanita Tikaram and composer Errollin Wallen. Great Britain has not received such an award for a long time: the last British owner of the Golden Lion was Richard Hamilton in 1993, writes The Art Newspaper. “Golden Lion” in the nomination for the best artist of the main project “Milk of Dreams”; was presented to Simone Lee, representing the United States. Lee showed a sculpture almost five meters high called “Brick House” (2019). This figure of an eyeless African-American woman greets visitors to the Biennale right at the entrance to the exhibition, this is the first thing you see on the main project in the Arsenal. According to the jury of the award, Li received the award “for meticulously crafted” hellip; and the very convincing monumental discovery of the Arsenal. “Silver Lion” went to the Lebanese Eli Cherry, who lives in Paris. A special mention goes to the French Pavilion, presented this year by Zineb Sedira, the country's first Algerian-born artist at the Biennale. As previously announced, the honorary Golden Lions The Lifetime Achievement Award was given to the German artist Katarina Fritsch and the Chilean artist Cecilia Vicuña. Russia is not taking part in the biennale this year after the artists selected for the national pavilion refused to present their work. The building itself, in the Giardini Gardens, recently renovated, was guarded by Italian security during previews for the press and guests to protect it from vandalism. Nevertheless, on April 22, one actionist ruined the facade. Belarusian Aleksey Kuzmich, who attributed the letters “Belo” to the word Russia with red paint and stood before him in a half-naked form, painting his body with gold and red. He called his action “Trans-USSR version: a delicacy for an enlightened consumer, or Conjuncture”. The 59th Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art runs until November 27.