The winner of the inaugural Bulgari Contemporary Art Award was recently announced with artist Nima Nabavi taking the top honours. The result was announced at the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai and the ceremony was attended by Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) and Member of the Dubai Council, the Authority. Nima’s work was picked from a shortlist of three art pieces selected by the jury.
The Award ceremony saw several notable names in attendance, including Her Excellency Hala Badri, Director General of Dubai Culture; His Excellency Giuseppe Finocchiaro, Consul-General, Italian Consulate (Dubai); Paolo Glisenti, Italy’s Commissioner General for Expo 2020 Dubai; Dr. Saeed Mubarak bin Kharbash, CEO of the Arts and Literature Sector at Dubai Culture; Jean Christophe Babin, Group CEO of Bulgari; and Lucia Boscaini, Brand Curator at Bulgari.
“It has been such a privilege for Bulgari to inspire these talented artists, each of whom expressed their unbridled creativity in a distinctive way. Art is indeed the most universal language, connecting people through beauty and passionate ideas. Bulgari found the perfect partner in Dubai Culture to nurture the vision of cultural dialogue among people and generations,” said Jean Christophe Babin, CEO of the Bulgari Group.
The trophy celebrates the cultural bond between Rome and Dubai. The winning piece uses the iconic Bulgari’s doorways and storefronts and melds them with architectural characteristics inspired by historical sites in Dubai such as Al Fahidi and Al Shindagha.
“I am thrilled to have won the Bulgari Contemporary Art Award. It means so much to me to win this award in the city I grew up in and to be a part of Expo and Dubai’s cultural conversation. I have benefited from Dubai’s past, and I am excited to be contributing to its future as well. My artwork mirrored the theme of ‘Beauty Connects People,’ and I wanted to show a mixture of colours and connections through intersecting lines as well as to create a lot of complexity and depth that would draw people here and grant them a feeling of peace, harmony and completion through connection,” Nima said.
The winning artwork is currently on display at the Italy Pavilion in Expo 2020, Dubai.
