Prominent video artist Nalini Malani has been given the Kyoto Prize – Japan’s highest private award – which includes a $700,000 purse.
Nalini Malani is well-known across the world for her video art, even though she has since spanned across other genres too like theatre and paintings. The press release after the award praised her for her “phantasmagorical spaces with approachable art forms [and] pioneered artistic expression that brings the voices of the voiceless to more people.”
Born in former Pakistan, Nalini Malani came to India as a refugee after India’s independence and partition. She studied art first in Mumbai, and then in Paris. After finishing her studies, Malani returned to India and started her professional career. Her primary theme in her works revolved around addressing the socio-political issues that plagued Indian society.
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The Kyoto Prize is considered the highest private award in Japan and is often equated to the Nobel Prize. It is given to individuals who have had significant lifetime contributions to either of three disciplines: advanced technology, basic sciences, and art & philosophy. The award carries a prize money of 100 million yen (currently $695,290) for each of the three categories. The award was established in 1984 and has since been given to notable figures like Nam June Paik and Tadao Ando.
