Beatrice Merz, President of the Fondazione Merz, announced the winners of the fifth edition of the Mario Merz Prize, the only international award for art and music: Mohamed Bourouissa (Art section) and Natalia Domínguez Rangel (Music section).
Mohamed Bourouissa was chosen from Elena Bellantoni, Anna Franceschini, Voluspa Jarpa and Agnes Questionmark by a jury composed of the public and Caroline Bourgeois (Curator of the Pinault Collection, Paris), Manuel Borja-Villel (author and independent curator), Massimiliano Gioni (Artistic Director of the New Museum, New York – Artistic Director of the Fondazione Trussardi, Milan) and Beatrice Merz.
Natalia Domínguez Rangel was chosen from Arturo Corrales and Luigi Morleo by a jury composed of the public and Thomas Demenga (cellist and composer), Philip Samartzis (sound artist and professor Melbourne University), Helena Winkelman (violinist and composer) and Willy Merz (composer and conductor).
The jury of the Art section unanimously decided to award Mohamed Bourouissa with the following motivation: For Mohamed Bourouissa, art carries an energetic charge… and it is precisely through this force that his work becomes a catalyst for transformation. When he reflects and creates, he does so in solitude – an essential condition that allows things to unfold and come to him: it is the world itself that collaborates with him. Art, for him, has a social role; it belongs to society, and his projects seek depth of meaning by offering us pathways of listening and observation. He opens our eyes to the aggression that lurks within a society standardised by behaviours and representations. In everyday objects, gestures and movements, he reveals the unrest of accumulated violence. He highlights not only the great upheavals of society and politics, but also the micro-phenomena of brutality that usually go unnoticed. Each project becomes an opportunity for him to navigate the shifting balance between freedom and control.
As the winning artist Mohamed Bourouissa will have the opportunity to create a personal exhibition project at the Fondazione Merz in 2027.
The jury of the Music section unanimously decided to award Natalia Domínguez Rangel with the following motivation: The music jury expressed particular appreciation for the work of Natalia Domínguez Rangel, which develops an original exploration of the porous boundaries between body and environment. The jury chose to reward her research for its refined sound design, the quality of its spatial and immersive construction, and its focus on permeability and transformation.
Natalia Domínguez Rangel will be commissioned to create a piece for string orchestra or for solo instrument and string orchestra, or alternatively for the design of the soundtrack for a space.
|
|