Loewe Craft Prize 2022
Since its launch in 2016, the annual Loewe Craft Prize has put a spotlight onto the world’s most talented, innovative and exciting craft artists working in all range of materials such as ceramics, glass, lacquer, bamboo, paper or horsehair.
On June 30th, the Loewe Foundation announced Dahye Jeong as the winner of the 2022 Loewe Foundation Craft Prize, with her work, A Time of Sincerity, 2021, a stunningly delicate, almost ethereal basket woven from horsehair using a 500-year old hat making technique. There were two Special Mention awards; one was given to South African ceramic artist, Andile Dyalvane, for Cornish Wall, 2019, a red earthenware vessel influenced by both Xhosa Culture and the Cornish coastline where it was made at the Leech Studio, and another to German-born artist Julia Obermaier, for Verborgen, 2021, which reflects her innovative approach to jewellery making and materials.
From 3100 submissions, there was a short list of 30 finalists selected in early 2022, from all parts of the globe, including Pao Hui Kao, an Eindhoven-based designer and researcher who often uses ordinary materials such as paper to create beautiful objects, Swedish glass artist, Fredrik Nielsen, Japanese bamboo basket weaver, Chikuunsai Tanabe, South African ceramic artist, Madoda Fani and Finnish artist, Marianne Huotari.
An exhibition of the finalist’s work was presented at the recently opened Seoul Museum of Craft Art from July 1-30, 2022.
Art, craft, design, and tradition have long been woven into the essence of the Loewe brand, which was first established as a collective craft workshop in 1846.
Since launching their annual prize in 2016, the Loewe Craft Prize has helped further establish craft as a valued art by museums, galleries and institutions as well as the mainstream public. The award supports artists who have decided to pursue careers in craft, often using ancient or labour-intensive processes, helping to preserve traditions and techniques, many of which are often considered lost techniques, as with this year’s winner.
“Craft is the essence of Loewe. As a house, we are about craft in the purest sense of the word. That is where our modernity lies, and it will always be relevant,” says Jonathan Anderson, Loewe creative director. The award was developed as a way of connecting to the heritage of the brand and reaffirming its support and use of craft as an essential part of their vision.
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