CHART fair Award

Artproof Award winner Ville Kumpulainen

The jury of this year’s Artproof Award made their rounds at the CHART Art Fair at Kunsthal Charlottenborg today. From all the great works exhibited at the prominent Nordic galleries presenting at the fair, the jury consisting of Rachael Chambers, Assistant Curator of Photography at V&A in London and photographers Asger Carlsen and Peter Funch, selected Ville Kumpulainen (represented by Persons Projects) as the recipient of the 2019 Artproof Award. Kumpulainen wins both a residency and a production grant of 5,000 euros to produce and transport works.

Ville Kumpulainen (b. 1988 in Finland) graduated with a degree in photography from Aalto University, School of Arts, Design and Architecture, in Helsinki in 2016. He is currently living and working in Helsinki, Finland. The jury’s statement about Kumpulainen’s work I... (2018) exhibited in Persons Projects’s booth at CHART:

‘The work struck us because of its poetic simplicity and it’s playful engagement with the viewer. In a time when opinions are constantly mediated through fastly advancing technology, the work’s immediateness and it’s simple display of found objects have an almost relieving effect on the viewer. The work doesn’t seem to be commenting on anything particular, meaning the viewer is able to engage on a personal, imaginative way. In that sense it has a timelessness to it.’

Artproof Award 2019 at CHART Artproof is a service-oriented fine art laboratory working with artists to realise their vision in print. This year, Artproof has chosen CHART to host the Artproof Award 2019. Continuously committed to supporting emerging talent, the Artproof Award is given to an outstanding young photographer, chosen from the CHART Art Fair. With CHART’s own long-term commitment to supporting young artists, we are delighted to have hosted this initiative in supporting an emerging talent. CHART is proud to collaborate with Artproof in facilitating this award dedicated to emerging artists in photography and to support this medium as part of our 2019 edition.

Krister Rekko, Partner at Artproof, elaborates: ‘The cooperation between CHART and Artproof was born out of shared passion in giving more visibility to Nordic artists working with the medium of photography. Artproof Award has been given out 17 times and to six different countries since 2012. The driving force behind the award is the commitment of giving back to the community by providing talented young artists with a possibility to realise their ideas and vision, with the best possible form and shape.

CHART Director Nanna Hjortenber adds:’ ‘With their strong focus on supporting emerging talent, CHART is proud to be partnering with Artproof for their 2019 award and we are very much looking forward to collaborating with Arproof for the 2020 edition of CHART’.