In seven years the COAL Prize became an international meeting place for artists who take up the main universal issue of our time : ecology.
The global ecological crisis now affects all societies, territories and activities, whether by climate change, depletion of resources, various forms of pollution or loss of biodiversity. A global crisis that criss-cross its economic and social consequences. But this crisis is also a cultural one. The dominant values and representations, our globalized culture, determine our individual and collective behaviours, and ultimately our collective impacts on Planet Earth. Therefore, the solutions to this crisis can not only be political and technical. Culture can be a major player. This is what COAL has been promoting since its founding in 2008.

The COAL Prize is open to artists from all over the world who deploy their creativity to devise and experiment with solutions and bear witness to the transformation of territories, lifestyles, organizations, and means of production, while making a contribution to the process themselves. Together they are participating in building a new collective narrative, a new world of imagination, an evolving shared heritage, a positive framework that is optimistic and essential for everyone to find the motivation to implement the necessary changes towards a more sustainable world.

The COAL Prize, created in 2010 by the COAL Art and Ecology non profit organisation, has become a vehicle of identification, promotion and diffusion of these artists, to the general public, professionals of culture and ecology and political figures. Every year the COAL Prize highlights ten projects by artists working on environmental issues in the field of visual arts. They are selected through an international call for projects. One of them is awarded the COAL Prize by a jury of personalities from the domains of art and ecology. In addition, all the applications considered by COAL and the selection committee make it possible to make known artists and projects that can be solicited or promoted according to the other opportunities and actions carried out by the association.

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CALENDRIER

 

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DOTATION

The prize-winner receives an award of 5,000 euros and is invited for a residency including an additional aid in production at Domaine de Belval (Ardennes – France) by the François Sommer Foundation.

Real observatory of rural and wild life, every year the Domaine de Belval welcomes artists chosen for their interest and their contribution to renewing the vision of the relationship between man and nature.

The François Sommer Foundation has been recognized as a public utility since 30th November 1996, the date of its creation by François and Jacqueline Sommer, pionneers of the implementation of humanist ecology. This foundation, which is true to the commitments of its founders, works for the protection of biodiversity, in which Mankind finds its place, for the respectful use of natural resources, for rational hunting, and sharing the wealth of natural, cultural and artistic
heritage. The Foundation also owns the Museum of Hunting and Nature in Paris, which has been open to the public since February 1967 and is listed as a ”Museum of France”.

DOWNLOAD THE BELVAL RESIDENCY CHARTER

 

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JURY AND SELECTION OF ENTRIES

The jury consists of prominent figures from the fields of art, ecology and research. The jury will be announced soon (you can see the jury of COAL Prize 2016).

Applicants will be judged on the following criteria: artistic value, relevance (understanding of the issues), originality (the ability to introduce new approaches, themes, and points of view), pedagogy (ability to get a message across and raise awareness), social and participative approaches (engagement, testimony, efficiency, societal dynamics), eco-design and feasibility.

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APPLICATION

The application should include the following documents together in a single PDF file. The application must not exceed 25 pages:

– Application form HERE application form – Coal Prize 2017;
– A summary and illustrated description of the entry, detailing its artistic aspects and its relevance to environmental issues;
– 2 HQ pictures illustrating your project;
– A note on the technical aspects of the entry, especially in terms of construction and means of production;
– A budget estimate;
– A Curriculum Vitae and a portfolio.

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CONTACT