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.
The sixth edition of the GFAA Awards features 99 Nominees representing 6 continents, 27 countries and 75 cities. More than half of these are from small institutions, independent projects and private collections.*
Highlights of these exceptional exhibitions, artists and projects are in this video
Due to the worldwide health crisis, the 2019 GFAA Awards Ceremony has been cancelled, but an online live Facebook event will take place on Monday, May 11, 2020 at 1:00 pm Eastern. All patrons and fans are invited to attend this live announcement of the winners of the 2019 GFAA Awards.
In 2018, the fifth edition of the program juried 13 Awards, and announced a final slate of 94 Nominees- from 6 continents, 49 cities and 31 countries across the globe. Whereas many are from the top 100 art museums visited in the world (*April 2017, The Art Newspaper), the majority (55%) are from smaller institutions, independent projects, galleries, fairs and biennials.
The culmination of the annual program took place on Tuesday, March 12, 2019 in celebration of all GFAA Nominees and the presentation of the Winners of the 2018 Global Fine Art Awards. The black-tie gala was held at the Harold Pratt Mansion on Park Avenue and 68th St in NYC, headquarters of the Council on Foreign Relations.
GFAA Judges selected thirteen Winners to be revealed during the award ceremony– one in each of the following categories: Contemporary and Post-War- solo artist; Contemporary and Post-War- group or theme; Impressionist and Modern- solo artist; Impressionist and Modern- group or theme; Renaissance, Baroque, Old Masters and Dynasties- solo artist; Renaissance, Baroque, Old Masters and Dynasties- group or theme; Ancient Art; Photography; Design; Fringe; Public Art, and the new awards that premiered in 2017 – Global Planet and Global Humanity.
The two most recent awards emphasize GFAA’s recognition of social issues addressed by artists and institutions.
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 relevance 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 showcasing our nominees as well as overview highlights. Now totaling over 160, these videos reside on our website, YouTube channel, and are shown live at the awards ceremony.
- We are Educational
In addition to the underlying educational messaging of recognizing the best exhibitions each year, we launched our first Educational Panels in March 2018, covering topics on the themes intertwined in our Global Planet and Global Humanity awards.
In October 2018, in conjunction with the Nomination Announcement Event, we hosted an afternoon of Salon Talks, with moderated sessions on art luminaries from around the world – sharing stories of their experiences from China and the Middle East, to Europe and the US.
- We are Growing
More than 40 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 12, 2019, 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.
“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,