Finalists Announced for For Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative

Following a worldwide search, Rolex today announced the 25 finalists being considered for a year of creative exchange in architecture, dance, film, literature, music, theatre and visual arts, as part of the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. One young artist in each discipline will be selected as a protégé for 12 months of one-to-one collaboration with leading artists Olafur Eliasson, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Michael Ondaatje, Alexei Ratmansky, Kaija Saariaho, Jennifer Tipton and Peter Zumthor.

The finalists, who range from 22 to 38 years of age, were selected from 154 nominees. They come from 21 countries, with all regions of the world represented: Asia (four finalists), Europe (six), North America (three), South America (five), Africa (five) and Middle East (two).

"During each cycle of the Arts Initiative, we have the privilege of meeting dynamic, emerging artists from around the world," said Rebecca Irvin, head of philanthropy at Rolex. "Every one of the finalists being considered has already been recognized for a growing body of work and exceptional promise. We anticipate great things in each of their careers and eagerly await the mentors' decisions to discover which seven of these artists will be selected as protégés."

The finalists in each category are:

Architecture

Mentor Peter Zumthor

Amritha Ballal, 33, India

Orlando Garcia, 38, Colombia/ United States

Gloria María Cabral Insaurralde, 31, Paraguay

Hiba Shahzada, 29, Jordan

Dance

Mentor Alexei Ratmansky

Robert Binet, 22, Canada

Myles Thatcher, 23, United States

George Williamson, 23, United Kingdom

Film

Mentor Alejandro González Iñárritu

Fellipe Barbosa, 33, Brazil

Denes Nagy, 33, Hungary

Tom Shoval, 32, Israel

Literature

Mentor Michael Ondaatje

Neal Hovelmeier, 35, Zimbabwe

Togara Muzanenhamo, 38, Zimbabwe

Chinelo Okparanta, 32, Nigeria/United States

Miroslav Penkov, 31, Bulgaria/United States

Music

Mentor Kaija Saariaho

Felipe Lara, 34, Brazil/United States

Vasco Mendonça, 36, Portugal

Anna Thorvaldsdottir, 36, Iceland

Theatre

Mentor Jennifer Tipton

Kévin Briard, 29, France

Christopher Kuhl, 30, United States

Sebastián Solórzano Rodríguez, 27, Mexico

Yeung Tsz Yan, 30, Hong Kong

Visual Arts

Mentor Olafur Eliasson

Sammy Baloji, 35, Democratic Republic of Congo/Belgium

Dineo Seshee Bopape, 32, South Africa

Sahej (Harveet) Rahal, 25, India

Sumakshi Singh, 34, India

The seven protégés selected from these finalists will be announced in May 2014.

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