2023

The museum received 487 submissions for the 2023 edition, which was the ninth annual event. This represents a slight drop (5%) compared to last year (514 submissions). The museum received an average of 546 submissions over the past 3 years, or 4% more than this same measurement last year (525 submissions).

Once again this year, the museum welcomed a brand-new selection committee with different artistic outlooks and sensibilities.

This year, 59% of the artists identified themselves as women, and 41% as men. We therefore saw a significant increase in the number of female artists compared to previous years. The average age of the artists was 50 years, which was slightly higher than last year (47 years). 33% of the artists were under 40, and 67% were over 40. The median age was 55 years (compared to 52 last year). 61% of this year’s artists were self-taught, while 39% have at least one art degree (64% and 36% last year). Three out of four artists had already exhibited their artwork (76%), which is much higher than last year (67%, or two out of three artists). The artists submitted approximately 5 works (4.91) with their applications, or around the same amount as last year.

We do not disclose the number of annual submissions received for each of the three groups of the competition, as this could affect the way artists choose groups during subsequent editions.

This year, “Painting” was once again the most popular category, accounting for 30% of the works received. “Drawing” accounted for 17%, while the “Mixed Techniques,” “Photography,” "Sculpture,” and “Decorative Arts” categories each accounted for around 10% of the works received.

Olafur Eliasson, Picasso, Van Gogh, David Lynch, and Giuseppe Penone were the five famous artists cited most frequently as inspirations.

The Luxembourg Art Prize was once again extremely popular at the international level this year, as evidenced by our Facebook page, where 188,000 people around the world follow our news. However, we did notice a clear drop in the visibility of our page’s publications this year, no doubt due to changes in the Facebook algorithm, which has significantly reduced the visibility of publications to leave more room for ads. Many users noticed that visibility on the social networks Facebook and Instagram was 10 times less than it had been in previous years. Like everyone else, we’re extremely frustrated that our publications are not automatically displayed to everyone who follows our page, but only to a small percentage of visitors.

2024 will mark the tenth anniversary of the Luxembourg Art Prize. A total of €380,000 (around US $400,000) has already been awarded to artists the past nine years.

Winner

2022

The museum received 514 applications for the 2022 edition, i.e., the 8th annual edition. This is a 20% decrease compared to 2021 (639 applications), but 21% increase compared to 2020 (423 applications). The average annual number of applications received each year over the past three years is approximately 525. This year, we are entirely within the 3-year average, and we can say that this year, we have regained the equilibrium that we had before the arrival of the pandemic.

This year, the museum was pleased to welcome an entirely new selection committee, which was not always the case in previous years. Candidates now have the assurance of presenting their artistic work to new eyes each year, which are open to all types of artistic sensibilities.

This year, 54% of candidates are women and 46% are men. Similar to the previous year, the average age of the candidates is 47.5 years. 31% of the candidates are younger than 40, and 60% are older than 40. The median age is 52. 64% of this year’s applicants are self-taught, and 36% have a degree in the arts. One in three applicants has never had the opportunity to exhibit their artwork anywhere (33%), which is in line with last year (30%). The artists presented an average of five works in their applications (an average of 4.83, to be exact), which is similar to last year.

The distribution of candidates among the year’s three selection groups is not communicated to the public, so as not to influence the natural distribution of candidates between the three groups in the next editions.

The popularity of the Luxembourg Art Prize at the international level is again this year very high, and more than 191,000 people from around the world follow our Facebook page to keep up with news of the Prize. This represents an increase of 9% compared to last year.

Winner

2021

Two additional prizes were created for the 2021 (7th) edition, bringing the total financial support available to artists to €80,000, or around $100,000. The money was split up between 3 laureates chosen by an independent jury. This year, the 1st place winner received €50,000, the 2nd place winner received €20,000, and the 3rd place winner received €10,000.

The museum received 639 applications for the 2021 edition. This represents an increase of around 51% compared to 2020.

In 2021, the selection committee noticed a substantial increase in the amount of digital artwork submitted compared to previous years, as well as much more street art and decorative artwork.

The other categories such as paintings, drawings, photography, and sculptures were also popular and once again represented a majority of the submissions.

The museum would like to thank the people at the Help Center who assisted applicants during the application process. When contacting the Help Center, applicants used the contact form 47% of the time (vs. 36% by email and 17% via the social networks). On average, the artists received an initial response within 24 minutes (24 hours per day, 7 days per week), while their requests were resolved within an average of 72 minutes. 94% of the applicants rated the Help Center as satisfactory, and the museum thanks everyone who participated in the evaluation of the Help Center’s team.

53% of the applicants were women and 47% men. The average age of the applicants was 47.5 years, or slightly higher than last year. 33% of the applicants were under 40, and 67% were over 40. 39% of the applicants were self-taught, while 61% were graduates of arts schools. This represents a clear reversal from previous years. 30% of the applicants had never had the opportunity to exhibit their work, or the same amount as last year. The artists submitted approximately 5 works (4.89) with their application, or around the same amount as last year. We do not disclose the number of applications received for each of the three groups of the competition, as this could affect the way applicants choose groups during subsequent editions.

Once again, the Luxembourg Art Prize was extremely popular at the international level; more than 175,000 people around the world have subscribed to the Facebook page to keep up with the news of the Prize.

Winner

2020

The year 2020 has been marked by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Adaptations within the organization have been made to help artists, including an exceptional 3-month extension to allow application files to be completed in good conditions. The museum received 423 application files for the 2020 edition. This is an increase of about 7% this year, compared to 2019.

Many artists welcomed the ease introduced in 2019 by a single application file that is reusable every year, so they could improve upon last year’s submission this year, without needing to restart from scratch.

Overall, the museum noticed the extremely high quality of the submissions received this year and the excellence of the work presented. Congratulations to everyone for this beautiful artistic work which delighted the selection committee!

The museum would like to thank the Help Center team, who supported candidates throughout the entire submission period. The artists contacted the team by email (43%), by using the help center’s form (38%), and through social media (19%). On average, artists received an initial response to their message in 22 minutes, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, and the tickets were resolved in an average of 40 minutes. This is a clear improvement from last year, when the average ticket response time was 4.34 hours. The Help Center response satisfaction rate is 94%, identical to last year’s, and the museum would like to thank everyone who participated in evaluating the support team’s work. For those who asked, it was not a robot responding to your messages, they were real people who delivered thoughtful responses to every message received.

55% of candidates were women and 45% were men. The average age of candidates was 46, the same as last year. 35% of candidates were less than 40 years old, and 65% were more than 40 years old. The proportion of those who were self-educated and those who had a degree from an art school was more or less equivalent. One out of three candidates had never had the opportunity to display their work anywhere (29%), compared to one out of four last year (24%). The candidates fully benefited from the possibility of presenting an unlimited number of works. Artists presented approximately 5 works in the application file (exactly 4.65 on average). One artist in particular presented more than a hundred works in their application file!

For the sixth edition, the total of the amount rewarded to the winner is €50,000, thanks to the generous sponsors who offer continuous support to this international event. The popularity of the Luxembourg Art Prize at the international level is quite significant. This year, the Luxembourg Art Prize made it into the Top 5 worldwide artistic prizes that any artist, amateur or professional, must apply for at least once in their life.

Winner

2019

Throughout the month of June 2019, the museum has received submissions from artists competing for the 2019 Luxembourg Art Prize. This fifth edition has been a resounding success, proven by the fact that a total of 396 entries have been received, compared with 305 last year, representing an increase of almost 30%. The candidate space has been greatly improved this year and the implementation of a single candidate file has simplified the process for artists. The candidate file submitted this year can be used again in subsequent years if artists wish to participate in future competitions. This year, many new artists have come forward. The quality of the submissions we have received appears to be excellent. Our Help Center, which provides assistance to artists, showed a satisfaction rating of 94% and the average first response time to candidate’s messages was 4.34 hours every day of the week, which is exceptional. In comparison, museums have an average response time of 20.5 hours. Therefore, the Luxembourg Art Prize staff responded to messages almost 5 times faster than the average time of museums throughout the world, and in addition, these responses were provided 24 hours a day.

This year, 56% of the candidates are women and 44% are men. The average age of the candidates is 45.5, which is very similar to last year. A third of the candidates are under 40 years of age. Almost half of the candidates are between 40 and 60 and 17% of the candidates are over 60. The trend noted in 2018 has continued as 55% of the candidates are self-taught (53% last year), compared to 45% who have received an art education (47% last year). This year, one in four candidates has never exhibited his or her work in public, compared to one in 5 candidates in 2018, which represents a marked increase over last year.

The 10 inspiring artists who were not chosen from the list but who were spontaneously mentioned the most often are Olafur Eliasson, David Lynch, John Cage, Antoni Gaudí, Pina Bausch, Fabienne Verdier, Mark Bradford, El Anatsui, Hayao Miyazaki and Beatriz Milhazes.

In terms of artistic techniques, painting and drawing represent half of the entries received, which is consistent with last year. These categories are followed by mixed media, photography and sculpture. The decorative arts account for 10% of the entries received, which is higher than previous years.

For this fifth edition, we have increased the amount of the Luxembourg Art Prize from €25,000 to €50,000 (about $US 57,000) thanks to our generous sponsors who support the valuable work of the Pinacothèque. The competition has gained popularity this year, with the participation of artists from every continent. The Luxembourg Art Prize has been ranked among the Top 10 art awards in the world since 2018. It is a prestigious competition that all artists, both amateur and professional, should enter at least once in their life.

Winner

2018

The Artistic Committee received the entries for the 2018 Luxembourg Art Prize on Tuesday 19 June 2018. This year saw a clear rise in the number of entries – 305 this year, compared with 276 last year, an increase of 10.5%. However, it seems as though candidates who received favourable attention from the artistic committee in previous years did not enter this year. Other candidates opened a candidate space with a profile that looked very interesting and definitely promising, but ultimately did not submit an entry. Completing the submission remains a step many candidates find difficult, and we regret that so many give up along the way even though their profiles show that they meet the necessary standard. At the same time, the Artistic Committee is happy with the number of entries received, which remains reasonable and allows enough time to examine each one carefully. Once their submission is complete, all the artists agree that they are glad they made it to the end. Especially since the intellectual effort required by the Artistic Committee of the Luxembourg Art Prize will be useful on other occasions in their future career. Overall, the selection committee has noticed the quality of the entries rising steadily, which is a very good thing.

This year, 53% of the candidates are women and 47% are men. 37% of candidates are under the age of 40. The age pyramid is very close to last year's. The average age of the candidates is 45. Like last year, about one in five candidates has never exhibited their work in public, in either a group or a solo show. Unlike last year, the majority of the artists, 53%, are self-taught, compared with 47% who have received art education. This is almost a reversal of last year's ratio. At least a quarter of candidates are inspired by 17 famous artists. They are: Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Salvador Dalí, Gustav Klimt, Claude Monet, Leonardo da Vinci, Jackson Pollock, Wassily Kandinsky, Francis Bacon, Frida Kahlo, Andy Warhol, Henri Matisse, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mark Rothko, Gerhard Richter, Egon Schiele and Caravaggio.

In terms of techniques, painting represents only 30% of entries this year compared with 46% last year, a significant drop of 35%. Drawing has grown strongly this year, accounting for 17% of entries, up from 10% in 2017. The decorative arts have also expanded slightly, from 5% to 8% of the entries submitted. Photography remains stable at 10% of entries. The popularity of the Luxembourg Art Prize has again continued to rise, and 114,000 people have now liked its Facebook page, compared with 70,000 last year.

Finally, the Luxembourg Art Prize has this year reached the global Top 10 of art prizes that every artist, amateur or professional, should enter at least once in their life.

Winner

2017

The Artistic Committee received the entries for the Luxembourg Art Prize on Monday 19 June 2017. Slightly fewer submissions were received this year than last year. 276 entries in 2017, compared with 292 in 2016. This may be due to the fact that candidates had one month less in 2017 to submit their entries than in 2016 (deadline of 18 June 2017 rather than 17 July 2016). 54% of the candidates are women and 46% are men. The age pyramid is very close to last year's. 36% of candidates are under the age of 40. The oldest candidate this year is 94. We have seen a doubling in the number of candidates who have never shown their work in a group or solo exhibition: about one candidate in five of this year's entries has never exhibited, compared with one in ten last year. 44% of candidates describe themselves as self-taught, compared with 43% last year. The ratio is thus almost identical. One artist in four is inspired by at least one of the following artists: Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Vincent van Gogh, Gustav Klimt, Claude Monet, Jackson Pollock, Henri Matisse, Francis Bacon, Wassily Kandinsky, Leonardo da Vinci, Frida Kahlo, Mark Rothko, Gerhard Richter, Egon Schiele, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Rembrandt, Anselm Kiefer and Alberto Giacometti. In terms of the disciplines practised, the decorative arts made an appearance in 2017, representing 5% of the entries submitted. Painting grew strongly, though, representing 46% of entries compared with 31% in 2016 and 38% in 2015 - almost half of this year's submissions. Finally, the popularity of Luxembourg Art Prize has continued to rise, and its Facebook page has been liked by nearly 70,000 people. We are delighted that the public continues to see the Luxembourg Art Prize as a leading international artistic event year after year.

Winner

2016

The Artistic Committee received the entries for the 2016 Luxembourg Art Prize on Monday 18 July 2016. There were considerably more entries than the previous year, rising from 191 entries in 2015 to 292 in 2016, an increase of 53%. This increase results from very effective word-of-mouth publicity and the excellent reputation acquired by the Luxembourg Art Prize in the art world. This year once again the profiles of the candidates are in line with the spirit of the Prize, which is aimed at all artists, male and female, young and not so young, practising all the disciplines of the visual arts. The balance this year is almost equal between men and women, with 51% of the entries from women this year (compared with 55% last year) and 49% from men (compared with 45% last year). The average age of this year’s candidates is 45. The 2016 edition attracted more entries from artists under 40. There were 38% this year, up from 30% last year. 62% of candidates were over 40, compared with 70% last year. The oldest candidate this year is 90, compared with 86 last year. The growth discipline this year is drawing, with 16% of candidates practising this medium compared with only 6% last year. Painting remains the leading discipline with 31% of entries, compared with 38% last year. 43% of candidates are self-taught and 87% have exhibited at least once, in either group or solo shows. One candidate in four is inspired by at least one of the following artists: Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Vincent van Gogh, Gerhard Richter, Jackson Pollock, Gustav Klimt, Francis Bacon, Claude Monet, Mark Rothko, Wassily Kandinsky, Leonardo da Vinci, Henri Matisse, Andy Warhol, Anselm Kiefer, Frida Kahlo, Egon Schiele, Louise Bourgeois, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Rembrandt, Joan Miró. Finally, the Luxembourg Art Prize has proved very popular – its Facebook page has been liked by over 25,000 people, and the website home page has been shared on social media nearly 13,000 times since it was created.

Winner

2015

The Artistic Committee received the entries for the 2015 Luxembourg Art Prize on Monday 20 July 2015, and we are delighted with the large number of submissions entered. We were initially expecting about a hundred entries, but in the end 131 submissions were received! The profiles of the candidates are entirely in line with the spirit of the Prize, which is aimed at all artists, male and female, young and not so young, practising all the disciplines of the visual arts. There is a good balance between men and women. 30% of the candidates are under 40, and 70% are over 40. The youngest candidate is 16, and the oldest 86. The most widely-practised disciplines are painting, mixed media, sculpture and photography. Of the three works submitted in each entry, the candidates on average presented their most expensive work first and the least expensive last 😉 Finally, the Luxembourg Art Prize has been very popular. The Prize’s Facebook page has been liked by nearly 2,500 people, and the website home page has been shared on social media nearly 3,600 times.

Winner