the Awards

The establishment of the Spyropoulos Prize was one of the fundamental aims of the Foundation, reflecting the intentions of its founders and, in particular, the desire of Jannis Spyropoulos to support new art. The yearly monetary prizes are given to two young artists no older than thirty years of age, which is the only limitation. The selection committees consist of five members to ensure that contemporary art is represented by a multiplicity of voices. The members of the committees (two artists, two art critics and a representative from the Foundation) are replaced every two years.

By means of the gracious offers made by the prize-winning artists, the Museum has been able to create a small collection of modern Greek art. The purpose of this collection is to be presented both independently and in tandem with a variety of organizations, and to thus come to constitute a vital link of our cultural organization with the present-day artistic reality. Later on, it will come to be referred to as a characteristic image of Greek art for an entire period, and will be made available for the study of that period.

The establishment of the competition and the awarding of the prizes, the realization of the yearly exhibitions of the young artists, the contact with the artists and critics who are chosen to be members of the committees, and the collection that is being created, have all given the Spyropoulos Museum the crucial potential to always remain up-to-the-moment. And in this manner, be able to carry on a conversation with the ideas and the people, which make up its natural environment, and to maintain an artistic dialogue with them.

Valambus Award

Since 2010, the Spyropoulos Foundation has been granted the possibility to offer young artists one more Prize.

The new prize is named 'V. I. Valambus Award', it concerns postgraduate students, Artists up to 35 years of age and is a monetary Prize. The sum of 6000 euros, will be awarded by the Foundation through the same process of the Spyropoulos Prizes.

The first Award has already been given in May 2010. The financial support for the Valambus Award, is donated by the children of the great collector, in his memory.

Announcement:

The committee for the Jannis Spyropoulos Awards 2010, consisting of the artists Thrafia and Pantelis Handris, the art historians Yiannis Papaioannou and Chryssa Kakatsaki and the representative of the Spyropoulos Foundation Olga Daniylopoulou, awarded the First Prize to the artist Ageliki Bozou and the Second Prize to the artist Lefteris Kiourtsoglou.