Mario Merz Prize

The International Award Mario Merz, officially presented November 9, 2013 at the Mole Antonelliana, the symbol of Turin, was created with the desire on the one hand to remember the figure of Mario Merz and the other to start a new project that is projected towards the future of art and which allows to identify and report, through the expertise of an extensive international network of experts in the field of personality and that, in parallel, to allow young composers to present itself to an innovative project of contemporary music. Tied to the Fondazione Merz, promoted by an organizing committee and supported by an authoritative international honor committee, the project wants to create a new network programming and exhibition of musical activity in Italy and Switzerland.

The choice of twin two nations have resulted from the characteristics of the two countries: both production centers and culture. Switzerland is the origin and nationality of the artist and Italy his country of adoption and the place of creation.
With the firm conviction that art is freedom of thought without boundaries and that too because of it strengthens the self-determination and the free movement of culture and ideas, the prize is dedicated to those who feed on the right will to prosecute their research beyond the opposition arising from political, social, geographical.
The artistic processes of the past two decades have been strongly influenced by the particular attention to changing historical, social and political for this and the tragedies that still see humanity protagonist, the award aims to track the work and the individual path of artists and composers that will make the short list of every edition, characteristics of internationality, generosity of thought, social attention in addition to research innovation.
In 2014 the two juries preselection have identified the five finalists of both sections of the first edition of which will be dedicated an exhibition and a concert to be held in Turin on 29 January.

The Prize that was awarded the medal of the President of the Italian Republic, has the patronage of the Swiss Embassy in Italy, the Italian Embassy in Switzerland, the Piedmont Region, the City of Zurich and the City of Turin and has every two years.

The exhibition of the finalists
Will be held from January 29 to April 12, 2015 at the facilities of the former thermal plant workshops Lancia headquarters of the Fondazione Merz in Turin (Via Limone 24) and collect two or three works for each author, chosen among the most significant of their artistic .
The exhibition will be curated by Beatrice Merz and accompanied by a new series dedicated to the prize.
Significant numbers of the art section: 701 nominator and 512 nominations including the five finalists were chosen Lida Abdul, Glenn Ligon, Naeem Mohaiemen, Anri Sala and Wael Shawky.

The task preselection has fallen to a jury of, Claudia Joy (independent curator), Beatrix Ruf (director of the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam) and Marisa Merz.

The concert of the finalists
Will be held January 29, 2015 in Turin in the eighteenth-century frame of Villa La Treasurer (France over 186) in collaboration with the Public Library Musical Andrea Della Corte. The concert, in collaboration with the Association DE ARE, will be directed by Willy Merz and performed by DE ARE Futura.

The music section has recorded 202 nominator and 132 nominations.
A Gianluca Cascioli (pianist), Stefano Pierini (composer and professor at the Centre for Musical Education of Turin) and Philip Samartzis (sound designer and professor at the University of Melbourne), you have the task of selecting the short list that is found to be composed of: Paolo Boggio, Arturo Corrales, Vassos Nicolaou, Cyrill Schürch and Vito Žuraj.

The biographies of the artists and composers finalists consultabilihttp: //www.mariomerzprize.org/shortlist-e-vincitori/

The winners
The public can express their preferences after visiting the exhibition or after listening to the concert of the finalists or by logging on to the website (mariomerzprize.org). The public vote will be added to the final verdict of the jury. The jury for the art is composed by Manuel Borja-Villel (Director Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid), Massimiliano Gioni (Chief Curator of the New Museum, New York - Artistic Director Trussardi Foundation, Milan), Lawrence Weiner (artist) and Beatrice Merz.

The jury for the music is instead made up of Dieter Ammann (composer), Thomas Demenga (cellist and composer), Alexander Lonquich (pianist) and Willy Merz.

The winning artist will be given a solo exhibition at the Fondazione Merz in Turin with the support for the creation of a new project. The exhibition, accompanied by an extensive monograph, will then be housed in a space in Switzerland as part of the new project "Nomad" of the newly Merz Foundation Switzerland.

Winner will be awarded to the composer, for this first edition, the sound of a museum and the commission of a track that will run in Turin orchestra string DE ARE early in the season 2015-2016, as part of a program between creation and contemporary repertoire. The music program includes to support the composition of the winner a new creation of Willy Merz for piano duet and orchestra performed by Alexander Lonquich and Cristina Barbuti addition to Concerto K 271 Jeunehomme Mozart for piano and orchestra.

The exhibition and the concert will be free admission.

"The award, which does not receive public funding but it supports only thanks to private initiative, since its birth is characterized by a spirit of openness and inclusion, and in fact we ask the public an active involvement through voting. - They say Beatrice and Willy Merz - For this reason, the Organizing Committee decided not to provide an entrance fee or for the exhibition or for the concert. "

The announcement of the winners of the first edition is scheduled for late April 2015

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