Christine Sun Kim’s Star-Spangeled Banner 2020 Wins The Fondation Prince Pierre Of Monaco’s International Prize For Contemporary Art

O Say, Can You See… Millions of Americans and millions of people across the world know the Star-Spangled Banner not only from major sports events, but also from being performed by the world’s best musicians at other important events. The anthem is synonymous with the identity of The United States with words to proudly sing along to. However, not everyone is so fortunate to be able to sing along, or to listen along to this song.

Christine Sun Kim, an American Artist based in Berlin, interpreted the American National Anthem in American Sign Language for the Deaf Community, which she considers a cultural group. She proudly performed her interpretation of the Star-Spangled Banner at the 2020 Super Bowl. For this outstanding artistic performance fellow artist David Horvitz nominated her for the Contemporary Art Prize of The Fondation Prince Pierre of Monaco. Alongside fellow nominee artist Nguyen Trinh Thi and her work How to improve the world (2020), Kim competed for the PIAC prize in Monaco in last month and won. Kim’s practice considers how sound operates in society, deconstructing the politics of sound and exploring how oral language can operate as social currency. Musical notation, written language, infographics, American Sign Language (ASL), the use of body and strategically deployed humor are all recurring elements in her practice.

The Fondation Prince Pierre of Monaco’s prize winners for 2022 were announced at a beautiful awards ceremony held last week at the Opéra Garnier in Monaco, with the President HRH The Princess of Hanover and her daughter Charlotte Casiraghi in attendance. The International Prize for Contemporary Art was awarded to Christine Sun Kim for her work The Star-Spangled Banner (2020).

Over an official lunch with the Fondation Prince Pierre of Monaco at the ballroom of the historic luxury Hotel Hermitage in Monaco, followed by coffees on their lovely terrace overlooking the Marina, I had the pleasure of spending time with Christine Sun Kim and engage with her via many smiles, eye contact and her two interpreters who were impressively translating Kim’s message into words and emotion.

„I am very delighted to win this prize and to be able to use this prize to create so much more meaningful work, especially to bring more recognition for sign-language and awareness for the Deaf culture to the world. There is more to communication than the spoken word.“

The Star-Spangled Banner (2020), a video shown at the ceremony, will be on view at Casa Encendida in Madrid from 10 November 2022 to 26 February 2023, alongside two other works by the artist. This exhibition will close following the International Contemporary Art Fair (ARCO).

First awarded in 1965, the International Prize for Contemporary Art (PIAC) has been organized by the Fondation Prince Pierre of Monaco since 1983. Since 2010 it has been awarded every three years by the ‘Conseil Artistique’, following a consultation with international experts from the art world. The winner receives a sum of €75,000, which includes potential funding for the production of an original work. For the 2022 edition of the PIAC each member of the ‘Conseil Artistique’ selected three patrons. These international experts were asked to choose an artwork created during the last two years, that they felt was the most accomplished and representative of an artist’s oeuvre.