The Kuenyehia Prize for Contemporary Ghanaian Art (the ‘Kuenyehia Prize’) a prestigious national art prize that identifies, rewards, and promotes Ghana’s most outstanding artists, aged 25 to 40, on April 9, picked Mr Kwame Akoto – Bamfo, as its ultimate winner for 2015.
The winner, a Masters Degree holder in Fine Art and a BFA (sculpture) from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, is skilled in carving (wood and stone), weld art, painting, modelling and drawing received a cash prize of GHC20,000.
The total cash prizes for 2015 was GHC25,000 with the two runners up, out of the 10 short-listed artists, sharing the remaining GHC5,000. Additionally, the three winners will benefit from coaching and mentoring from some of Ghana’s most celebrated masters.
Mr Elikem Kuenyehia, CEO of the Kuenyehia Prize observed that, “art thrives only if there is vibrant art scene,” a responsibility he is committed to.
Inspired by the most famous art prize in the world – UK’s Turner Prize – the Kuenyehia Prize hopes to create a Ghanaian version through supporting young artists along the whole value chain so they can pursue their dreams and careers in art with passion and excellence.
Similarly, it also seeks to raise the bar for Ghanaian art by inspiring the next generation of Ghanaian artists to produce outstanding work that will attract both local and international audiences.
The Kuenyehia Prize is currently limited to paintings, drawings, photographs, sculpture, carvings and installations by artists living in Ghana, and the emphasis is on artists who have already made some commitment to art as a career and a way of life and with some level of demonstrable track record.