Golden Lion Award for Best Artist
56th Venice Biennale
Golden Lion for best artist in the International Exhibition All the World’s Futures to Adrian Piper,
for The Probable Trust Registry: The Rules of the Game #1-#3.
I am deeply grateful to the jury for selecting my work for this award, and I am humbled to have been chosen in the presence of all of the powerful and eloquent art in this magnificent exhibition. It is a very great honor to accept it on behalf of all of the artists who have contributed so much to the realization of Okwui Enwesor’s vast and profound vision for contemporary art in the 21st century, as a force not only for change but also for progress. It is Okwui’s vision and deep insight into contemporary art as the scalpel for dissecting the tectonic shifts of cultural capital, production and value, to which I am most deeply grateful for my participation in this year’s Venice Biennale. This exhibition is the game-changer for any and all future exhibitions anywhere that aspire to be international; and none will be able to lay claim to that title without consulting and learning from his magisterial achievement in this one. It is a privilege to be a part of it. My gratitude for Okwui’s inspired and brilliant curation of my work knows no bounds. Without the dedication, commitment and forbearance of Luz Gyalui and Paolo Cimarosti, my vision for my work would have been impossible to realize. My debt to both of them, and to Alexandra Durand de la Penne for special help at an important moment, is very great. Finally, again my heartfelt thanks to the judges for bestowing on me the enormous privilege of this award. I am deeply moved and honored by their recognition. Thank you. Adrian Piper
9 May 2015