The Praemium Imperiale Award, one of The Japan Art Association’s most prestigious art awards in the world, has been awarded to the renowned Brazilian photographer Sebastiao Salagado.
Salgado was one of four recipients of this award, which is the largest cash art award in the world. It awarded 15 million Japanese Yen (approximately $137,000) to each of them. The Japan Art Association presented the award under Prince Hitachi as its honorary patron. This was reported by Art News, The Art Newspaper and The Art Newspaper.
Salgado’s name was chosen from lists submitted by international advisors from various countries. Specialist committees in Tokyo announce the winners after the Japan Art Association has proposed potential finalist names. Salgado is described as a “spotlight on the exploited and dispossessed, the beauty and fragility of nature, and the world’s inhabitants” by the Japan Art Association.
About Sebastiao Salgado
Sebastiao Salgado Jr. (born on February 8, 1944) was a Brazilian photojournalist and social documentarian.
His photographic projects have taken him to over 120 countries. Many of his photographs have been published in books and magazines. His work has been exhibited in many countries.
Salgado is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Salgado was given the W. Eugene Smith Memorial Fund Grant, the Foreign Honorary Membership of American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAS) in 1992 and Royal Photographic Society’s Centenary Medal and HonFRPS in 1993. Since April 2016, he has been a part of the Academie des Beaux-Arts, Institut de France.