The O-68 Award: More than just a prize

As snow covers the Dutch landscape and families gather inside we prepare for one of the Netherland’s most intimate art awards, the O-68 Award.

For the second time, Art Gallery O-68 in Velp, a small village next to the vibrant city of Arnhem, organises the O-68 Award on December 10th. The award, a €10,000 stimulance prize is meant to provide artists from the Dutch bordering provinces and Nordrhein Westfalen in Germany and Flanders in Belgium with the opportunity to expand their presence and promote their artworks. To be nominated means having graduated between 7 and 14 years ago from an art-related educational institution. This is the most important tipping point in an artist’s career. Nominees are also judged on the quality of their work as well as their plan what to do with the money if they win.

^{Progress (2015), Elise Eeraerts}

This year’s finalists are (in alphabetical order); Elise Eeraerts, Karen Vermeren and Wieteke Heldens. In the past few weeks their studios have been visited by the jury and this afternoon, the winner will be announced. Guests at the award will be treated to an exhibition of the finalist’s work.

^{The Legend from New York (2016), Wieteke Heldens}

At 3.30pm today, mrs. Mirjam Westen, Contemporary Art Curator at the Museum Arnhem will open the exhibition and at 4pm mrs. Anne Mie Emons, gallerist of Art Gallery O-68 will announce the winner on behalf of the jury, consisting this year of;

Hermine De Groeve – Galerie De Buck (Ghent, Belgium)

Marcel Doorduin – Artist and teacher ArtEZ

Klaus Ebbers – Galerie Ebbers (Kranenburg, Germany)

Coen Vernooij – Artist (Nijmegen)

^{Esmarkbreen in Koksijde (2017), Karen Vermeren}