Nominations open for the annual Helgaard Steyn Awards
Nominations are open for the annual Helgaard Steyn Awards, which will be awarded in the painting category this year.
The prizes are awarded in a quadrennial cycle, rotating among the disciplines of musical composition, painting, literature and sculpture.
The value of the prize has increased considerably over the past decades, making the Helgaard Steyn Award one of the most substantial art prizes in the country (exceeding R500 000).
The previous recipients of the Helgaard Steyn Award for Painting are Kagiso Patrick Mautloa, Pippa Skotnes, Nel Erasmus, Robert Hodgins, Cyril Coetzee, Bronwen Findlay and Pauline Gutter.
Angela de Jesus of the University of the Free State, Annemi Conradie of North-West University and Shonisani Netshia of the University of Johannesburg are the adjudication panel for the 2023 award.
The deadline for nominations is 31 August 2023 –
they can be submitted online.
Direct any inquiries to E-mail: info@helgaardsteynawards.co.za
Nominations for 2023
Requirements and conditions for the nomination of candidates:
- Any artist of South African birth is eligible for the Helgaard Steyn Award. The prize is awarded for any work of art considered, in the opinion of the panel of adjudicators, to be the most meritorious in the discipline, provided that it was produced during the preceding four years and that it remains accessible to the South African public, for example by being included in a public art collection or by being exhibited in a public building or space.
- The adjudicators interpret the provisions to imply that the merits of the works of art under consideration would include their exemplification of a high level of artistic achievement and innovative leadership maintained by the artist over an extended period of time.
- Keeping within current practice in the visual arts, ‘painting’ may include work in series, drawings, tapestries, prints and work on paper.
- Art museums, galleries and their appointees, curators, art consultants and arts practitioners are invited to nominate artworks by submitting a statement of motivation, a curriculum vitae of the artist and the details of the artwork (including visual documentation) to the panel of adjudicators.
- No correspondence on the merits of any specific award will be undertaken on the behalf of the Trust.
Helgaard Steyn Awards are awarded annually, alter- nated in a four-year cycle, to:
The painter who, during the afore-going four years, produced the best painting and offered it for sale at a public exhibition, or who produced such painting, commissioned by a private person or a public body, on the understanding that it be placed in public in a way that allows reasonable public access.
The author of the best work of any nature in Afrikaans that, during the afore-going four years, was offered for sale on the open market in at least three hundred (300) print-copies.
The sculptor who, during the afore-going four years, produced the best sculpture and offered it for sale at a public exhibition, or who produced such sculpture, commissioned by a private person or a public body, on the understanding that it be placed in public in a way that allows reasonable public access.
The composer who, during the afore-going four years, composed the best piece of music and offered at least ten complete copies available for sale on the open market.
The History of the Helgaard Steyn Trust
The Helgaard Steyn Trust originates from the estate of the late Dr. Johan Heinrich (Jan) Steyn. He was born on 20 April, 1902 and was the eldest of six children of Barendina Wilhelmina (Dina) Richter and Hillegard Mulder (Helgaard) Steyn.
Dr. Steyn was an ex-student of the former Grey University College (the present-day University of the Free State). He obtained a doctorate in Economy and Political Science (cum laude) from the University of Heidelberg in Germany.
In 1961, Potchef- stroom University College (the present-day North-West University) awarded him with an honorary doctorate in Economic Science.
Until his retirement, in 1966, he served as an MP for Potchefstroom. Dr. Steyn was never married. He died in Bloemfontein on 15 December, 1983 at the age of 81 years.
1987 – Pippa Skotnes for Lament/Klaagsang
1991 – Nel Erasmus for Jazz Baby/Spent Autumn
1995 – Robert Hodgins for South African Summer: All This is So, And Yet …
2003 – Cyril Coetzee for T’kama-Adamastor
2007 – Bronwen Findlay for All about everything
2011 – Pauline Gutter for Silenced I
2015 – Penny Siopis for Swarm
2019 – Pat Mautloa for Urban Vibes (City Buzz)
1989 – David Brown for Voyage II
1993 – Jackson Hlungwani for Tiger Fish II, Adam and the birth of Eve, Large crucifix, God and Christ, Michael Star and Altar of God
2001 – Willem Boshoff for Blind alphabet ABC
2005 – Jan van der Merwe for Showcase
2009 – Andrieta Wentzel for Aspects of the dark other
2013 – Wim Botha for Blastwave
2017 – Angus Taylor for Dionysus
1988 – Karel Schoeman for ’n Ander land
1992 – John Miles vir Kroniek uit die doofpot
1996 – Breyten Breytenbach for Nege landskappe van ons tye bemaak aan ’n beminde
2000 – John Kannemeyer for Leipoldt: ’n Lewensverhaal
2008 – Marlene van Niekerk for Agaat and Hermann Giliomee for Die Afrikaners
2012 – PG du Plessis for Fees van die ongenooides
2016 – Willem Anker for Buys
2020 – Lodewyk G. du Plessis for die Dao van Daan van der Walt
1990 – Roelof Temmingh for Drie sonnette
1994 – Peter Klatzow for From the poets
1998 – Stefans Grové for Afrika Hymnus II
2002 – Roelof Temmingh for Kantate Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein
2006 – Roelof Temmingh for Kantorium
2010 – Hans Huyssen for Proteus Variations
2014 – Peter Klatzow for Lightscapes
2018 – Adrian More for Klavierkonsert No 1
2022 – Christo Jankowitz vir String Quartet No 3
Nominations open for the annual Helgaard Steyn Awards
Nominations are now open for the annual Helgaard Steyn Awards, which will be awarded in the Music Composition category this year.
The prizes are awarded in a quadrennial cycle, rotating among the disciplines of musical composition, painting, literature and sculpture.
The value of the prize has increased considerably over the past decades, making the Helgaard Steyn Award one of the most substantial art prizes in the country (exceeding R500 000).
The previous recipients of the Helgaard Steyn Award for Music Composition are Roelof Temmingh, Peter Klatzow, Stefans Grové, Hans Huyssen and Adrian More.
Vorige ontvangers van die Helgaard Steyn-prys vir musiekkomposisie is Roelof Temmingh, Peter Klatzow, Stefans Grové, Hans Huyssen en Adrian More.
The deadline for nominations is 30 September 2022 -
they can be submitted online.
Direct any inquiries to E-mail: info@helgaardsteynawards.co.za.
More about the Helgaard Steyn Trust
The Trust was established by the estate of Dr JH (Jan) Steyn (1902-1983), old boy of Grey University College (now the University of the Free State), late MP for Potchefstroom and director of companies. The Trust is named after his father, a past MPC for Bloemfontein and youngest brother of MT Steyn, the last president of the old Orange Free State republic. The current trustees are Ms Hanneli Rupert-Koegelenberg, Mr Gerard Rupert, Mr Francois van der Merwe, Mr Johannes van Niekerk and ABSA Trust Ltd.
The Helgaard Steyn Trust benefits the conservation of agricultural land in the Free State and the promotion of artistic culture in South Africa. Fifty percent of the net annual rental income from the conservation area is dedicated to the Helgaard Steyn Award. The presentation venue alternates between Potchefstroom and Bloemfontein.
Each year the principals of the universities of North-West and the Free State appoint an adjudicator in the relevant discipline.
The appointees then nominate a third adjudicator. Professor Chris van Rhyn of North-West University, Mr Lance Phillip of the University of the Free State and Professor Hendrik Hofmeyr of the University of Cape Town are the adjudication panel for the 2022 award.
Nominations fo 2022
Requirements and conditions for the nomination of candidates:
- Any composer born in South Africa is eligible for the Helgaard Steyn Award. The prize will be awarded to the nominated contemporary art music composition considered the most meritorious by the adjudication panel. The work must have been produced and performed in the four-year period from 2018 to 2021. A recording must be available and/or the work must have been performed professionally to the public.
- Any individual, organisation or institution in the music discipline may nominate a composition to the adjudication panel by submitting a written motivation, a curriculum vitae of the composer and details of the work, including a score (if applicable) and a recording (or a link to an online recording).
- Submission criteria:
- Compositions should be at least 10 minutes long.
- They may be composed for any setting, including solo instrument or voice (accompanied or unaccompanied), ensembles, orchestras, electronic music and electro-acoustic music. Works for staged performances such as operas, ballets and contemporary dance pieces may also be submitted.
- Acoustic works must include a score.
- Electronic music and electro-acoustic works should include detailed performance instructions and, if relevant, a score.
- Electronic music scores should include an outline of the composition’s design, including a list of the recorded and electronically generated sounds used.
- All submissions should include an MP3 sound or/and an MP4 video recording.
- Evaluation criteria:
- Scores, where relevant, must be of a professional standard. The notation and other performance directions should be clear and editorially faultless, as should the layout.
- Performance instructions and outlines should be clear and editorially faultless.
- Although their style is not prescribed, the works should reflect a mature and novel compositional voice.
- Works should display an advanced technique, including advanced knowledge of the instruments/voices and/or electronic resources used and a sound structural design. This does not imply that compositional resources may not be deliberately used in unidiomatic ways. nie dat kompositoriese hulpbronne nie opsetlik onidiomaties gebruik mag word nie.
- The adjudicators interpret the spirit of the Helgaard Steyn Trust’s provisions to imply that the merits of the winning composition should include an exemplification of a high level of artistic achievement and innovative leadership by the composer over an extended period.
- No correspondence on the merits of any specific award will be undertaken on behalf of the Helgaard Steyn Trust after the adjudicators’ recommendation has been submitted to the trustees and the name of the recipient of the award has been announced.