Overview
GFAA IS THE FIRST ANNUAL PROGRAM EVER CREATED TO RECOGNIZE THE BEST CURATED ART AND DESIGN EXHIBITIONS AND INSTALLATIONS WORLDWIDE.
The GFAA program honors innovation and excellence in exhibition design, historical context, educational value, and public appeal. This annual awards program recognizes the best curated fine art and design exhibited around the world- in museums, galleries, fairs, biennials and public installations.
Our international Art Research Committee assesses prospective nominees, with continuous review of over 50 sources of print and online art editorial and critiques. Through these sources, more than 200 museums and 2,000 exhibitions are vetted during the annual art research as well as personalized assessments based on exhibition visits.
In addition to the research-based nominations, GFAA accepts open calls from museums, biennials, fairs, galleries and other art organizations. Individual patrons may nominate their favorite exhibitions as well.The Nominating Committee reviews the slate prepared by the Art Research Committee, and presents their findings and final approvals to the Judges. The Judges modify and select the final slate of Nominees, then vote on the Finalists and Winners.
In 2017, the fourth edition of the program juried 13 Awards, from a final slate of 85 Nominees- from 6 continents, 60 cities and 28 countries across the globe. Whereas 37% are from the top 100 art museums visited in the world (April 2015, The Art Newspaper), the majority (63%) are from smaller institutions, independent projects, galleries, fairs and biennials.
Public opinion matters
Nominees and winners for 13 awards are selected by a panel of expert judges. However, an integral aspect of the GFAA program is to engage the general public, and include their voice in the program results. Members of the general public vote online for their favorite nominee on the GFAA website and twitter. The most popular exhibitions win the final two awards -Youniversal and YOU-2.
Amplify the Voice
The GFAA program’s mission is to develop interest and passion for fine art, and to further its educational role in society. Our vision is to elevate the importance and relevancy of fine art in the world today: economically, socially, and culturally.
GFAA provides an indelible footprint for the stewardship of the best exhibitions produced each year
- We are Digital
The GFAA website and social media activity feature original and shared content, photos and links to all Nominee’s websites. Each year we create videos for every one of our Finalists and a program overview for the Youniversal Award. Now totaling 124, these videos reside on our website, YouTube channel, and are shown live here at the awards ceremony. All have been created by our super-star video producer, Hogan Fritz.
- We are Educational
In addition to the underlying educational messaging of recognizing the best exhibitions each year, we launched our first Educational Panels earlier this year, hosted by K&L Gates LLP. We cover topics on the business of art, and the themes intertwined in our Global Planet and Global Humanity awards – with superb panelists from our Nominees and our own GFAA Judge, Dr. Joe Lin-Hill. The Education Committee is spearheaded by GFAA Executive Committee member Desiree Moore.
- We are Growing
More than 35 GFAA Team members support the program in various Committees – providing expertise and passion for the mission of GFAA. Our Team represents 20 nationalities, from 4 continents, underlying our global footprint.
At our recent Award Ceremony on March 8, 2018, over 30 of our Nominees attended – along with their families, friends, fans, gallerists and partners.
We believe that the GFAA program serves to educate people around the world about art and its global messages. The collective voice of art, amplified by the work of our Nominees and other great initiatives around the world, is so needed to continually strive for better balance in the universe.
How do we experience art?
Through the internet and digital media, we now access and experience so much global information- and this includes art.
The digital age provides both opportunities and risks for museums and other art organizations to grow their audiences. Digital representation of exhibitions, and artworks for sale through auction houses, galleries and online media companies, creates a completely global audience, and a unique curated experience.
However, nothing will ever replace the feeling and sensory experience of seeing exhibitions live.
Where else can we “see” and experience a virtual collection of the best exhibitions from around the world? As far as we are aware, nowhere else besides the GFAA program.
There is so much to experience and share – and we believe that the GFAA program will help educate people around the world about art and its global messages.
From religion, war and politics, to love, lust, family and nature, the themes of life woven through art are as relevant today as they were from the beginning of time.
In many ways, this is reassuring. Or, at least it is to me.
Congratulations to all of the nominees, and thank you for your beautiful work.
Judy Holm, GFAA President and CEO
“Celebrating Great Exhibitions – Consider how hard art museum professionals work to conceive and organize their temporary exhibitions and installations of art and design, and also how much money their institutions spend to mount and tour them. Now ask yourself: how are the best of these projects honored, after the lights have dimmed and the loaned artworks have headed home?… Oddly, in a world teeming with award ceremonies for seemingly every possible artistic activity, there is no program that recognizes such exhibitions. Fortunately, … (this valued team) set about creating the Global Fine Arts Awards. “ Peter Trippi, Editor-in-Chief, Fine Art Connoisseur magazine (Sep 2015), GFAA Advisory Board and Judge Emeritus,