Artadia, a non-profit grantmaking organization and nationwide community of visual artists, curators, and patrons, is pleased to announce the 2023 Houston Artadia Awardees: Violette Bule, the Horton Artadia Award Recipient, Saúl Hernández-Vargas, and Irene Antonia Diane Reece.
The 2023 Houston Artadia Awards application was open to visual artists working in any visual media, at any stage in their career, who have been living and working within Harris county for a minimum of two years. The 2023 Houston Artadia Awards received 110 applications, with 75% of the applicants identifying as Black, Native American or Alaskan Native, Latinx, Asian, Arab, biracial or multiracial; 58% of applicants identify as women, gender nonconforming, or nonbinary; and 56% self-identify as emerging artists.
The Awards decision was reached after an extensive two-tiered jurying process. This year’s finalists for the Awards included Keliy Anderson-Staley, Ann Johnson, and Anna Mayer, selected by Round 1 jurors Alana Hernandez, Senior Curator + CALA Alliance Curator of Latinx Art, ASU Art Museum; Anna Walker, Executive Director, Lawndale Art Center; and Adeze Wilford, Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami.
“I learned so much about the rich artistic talent in Houston as a juror for the 2023 Houston Artadia Awards,” said fellow juror Hernandez. “After much deliberation with my fellow jurors, we chose a group of finalists that encompass diverse approaches toward their thoughtful, rigorous, and timely projects.”
All six finalists held virtual studio visits with jurors Omar Lopez-Chahoud, Independent Curator, and Anna Walker, Executive Director, Lawndale Art Center.
On the jurying process, Walker remarked, “Being part of the jury process for Houston’s Artadia award reaffirmed my belief in the breadth and depth of Houston’s artistic talent. There are so many artists making work worthy of recognition and support. Artadia is doing important work providing unrestricted grants, truly believing in artists and I’m humbled to be a small part of the process. My hope is that this work and investment in the Houston community acts as a catalyst for others to recognize and invest even further in the wider community of creativity happening in our city and region.”
Click here to read the full press release or here to read about it in Glasstire.
Since its founding in 1999, Artadia has awarded over $6 million in unrestricted funds to over 400 artists nationally. Celebrating visual artists and their foundational role in shaping society, the Artadia Award benefits three artists annually in seven major US cities with high concentrations of creative workers—Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
The 2023 Houston Artadia Awards are supported by the John C. Eckel Foundation, Cecily Horton, the Artadia Board of Directors, Artadia Council supporters, and individual donors across the country.
Image, left to right: Violette Bule (photo courtesy of the artist); Saúl Hernández-Vargas (photo credit Madison Lloyd); and Irene Antonia Diane Reece (photo credit Kaba Dia).