Two Cultural Figures Connected to Britain Win Major European Prize: Film-Maker John Akomfrah and Curator Charles Esche
AMSTERDAM, March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
The European Cultural Foundation (ECF) is pleased to announce that British-based film-maker John Akomfrah and British-born curator Charles Esche will receive the ECF Princess Margriet Award next week.
The award is given out annually to European artists, intellectuals and activists who envisage a truly intercultural landscape and strive for societal change. The prize is a tribute to HRH Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, who served as ECF President from 1983 to 2007.
This is the fourth year of the award and the first time that two cultural figures with such strong ties to Britain have been chosen. They will both receive prize money of 25,000 Euros.
This year's laureates include John Akomfrah (1957, Ghana), who lives and works in London. The jury praised Akomfrah's body of work - from his earliest film essay Handsworth Songs (1986) to his latest feature film Nine Muses (2010). His most recent work is an artistic mediation on migration, myth and memory using diverse perspectives that challenge the dominant narratives of European history.
The other laureate this year is Charles Esche (1962, England), the current Director of the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. Esche is honoured for his exceptional leadership in rethinking museums of contemporary art as public spaces that show us the power and value of art in engaging with society.
The two laureates will receive the Award during a ceremony in the Egg in Brussels on Monday, 19 March, in the presence of HRH Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, HRH Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands (current ECF President) and HRH Princess Astrid of Belgium.
Prior to the Award ceremony, ECF and Flemish-Dutch House deBuren will host a public debate "Politics, economics and culture, a different balance?" between laureate Charles Esche with Professor Judith Marquand (Wolfson College, Oxford) and Frans Timmermans (former Dutch Minister for European Affairs) moderated by Julie de Groote, (President of the Brussels French-speaking Parliament).
Notes for the Editor
1. Both John Akomfrah and Charles Esche are available for interview.
2. You are cordially invited to the Princess Margriet Award ceremony, which takes place on 19 March 2012 at 16.45 in the Egg, Brussels.
Here is the link to register:
http://crmplatform.nl/engine?app=ecf&service=classmanager:form:6&cmd=new
3. You are also invited to the debate on the 19 March 2012 at 14.30 in the Egg, Brussels.
Here is the link to register:
http://www.deburen.eu/en/events/detail/politics-economics-and-culture-a-different-balance
More information about the laureates and Princess Margriet Award below:
John Akomfrah
Charles Esche
ECF Princess Margriet Award
http://www.eurocult.org/activities/princess-margriet-award
ECF
4. The Award is organised in cooperation with the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
5. The European Cultural Foundation is an independent foundation that has been operating for nearly 60 years, supporting cultural exchange and creative expression across 59 countries in Europe.
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