The board of directors of the Venice Biennale, chaired by Paolo Baratta, awarded Ghanaian artist El Anatsui the Golden Lion for lifetime achievement. The decision was made upon the recommendation of the curator of the this year’s biennale, Okwui Enwezor, who said in a statement that the Golden Lion acknowledged ‘not just his recent successes internationally, but also his artistic influence amongst two generations of artists working in West Africa’.
The biennale also announced the members of its international jury, which will be charged with awarding the Golden Lions for best national participation and for best artist in the international exhibition, Enwezor’s All the World’s Futures, as well as the Silver Lion for a promising younger artist also in the exhibition. Jurors include Naomi Beckwith, curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Sabine Bergeweiser, director of the Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Mario Codognato, the chief curator of 21er Haus Vienna, Ranjit Hoskote, a writer and curator, and Yongwoo Lee, a curator and former director of the Gwangju Biennale Foundation.
Read our Power 100 profile of El Anatsui.
23 April 2015
