The 2009 winners of the prestigious Praemium Imperiale arts awards, announced by the Japan Art Association at the official residence of the Japanese Ambassador in Berlin, include Tony and Oscar-winning playwright and screenwriter Tom Stoppard and international architect Zaha Hadid. Carrying prizes of 15 million yen (approximately $163,000) each, the awards recognize lifetime achievement in the arts in categories not covered by the Nobel Prizes.
The 2009 Praemium Imperiale Laureates are:
Hiroshi Sugimoto
Painting/Photography Japan
Richard Long
Sculpture UK
Zaha Hadid
Architecture UK (born in Iraq)
Alfred Brendel
Music Austria (born in Czechoslovakia)
Tom Stoppard
Theatre/Film UK (born in Czechoslovakia)
In addition to announcing the five Praemium Imperiale Laureates, the Japan Art Association also named the Kremerata Baltica winner of its annual Grant for Young Artists award. The award of 5 million yen (approximately $54,000) is presented to a group or institution that encourages the involvement of young people in the arts.
Praemium Imperiale candidates are nominated by a distinguished panel of International Advisors and selected by the Japan Art Association. William H. Luers, the American Advisor and former President of the United Nations Association, said, “We are honored to recognize this year’s distinguished and diverse group of Laureates. These impressive and inspiring artists touch people around the world and their works enrich the global community.”
Other International Advisors include Lamberto Dini, François Pinault, Otto Graf Lambsdorff, and Yasuhiro Nakasone. This year, the Japan Art Association also announced that Lord Christopher Francis Patten has been named as the UK’s International Advisor, succeeding the late Sir Edward Heath. Praemium Imperiale Honorary Advisors are David Rockefeller, Jr., Jacques Chirac, David Rockefeller, Helmut Schmidt, and Richard von Weizsäcker.
The Praemium Imperiale was created in 1988 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Japan Art Association and to honor the late Prince Takamatsu, who served as the association’s honorary patron for 58 years.
For more information on the Japan Art Association and the Praemium Imperiale, including biographies of current and past winners, visit www.praemiumimperiale.org
