October 21th, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A message from
The Venezuelan American Endowment for the Arts
Reinaldo & Carolina Herrera
Advisory Board Chairs
Ali Cordero Casal
Chairman
The Board of Directors & Advisory Board
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Have the pleasure to inform you The Páez Medal of Art 2021 will be bestowed on |
FUNDACIÓN EMPRESAS POLAR
Leonor Giménez de MendozaPresident/FounderFundación Empresas Polar |
This year, The Páez Medal of Art wishes to honor philanthropy, and the love for humanity reflected in its practice, as the highest form of art. The Medal, which is offered once a year to an individual or group, contributes to the excellence, growth, support, and proliferation of the arts in both Venezuela and the United States. It recognizes the extraordinary accomplishments of individuals or institutions engaged in the creation and advancement of the arts and in furthering education.
In these complex and difficult times, it is important to set an example for future generations. The Venezuelan American Endowment for the Arts (VAEA) wants to honor an extraordinary foundation that works to promote local development through various programs, initiatives, and activities positively impacting communities throughout Venezuela. Since 1977, the Fundación Empresas Polar – the philanthropic arm of Empresas Polar – has dedicated itself to many noble causes, including using the transformative power of the arts, science and education to create positive change at the community level by increasing capacity to support comprehensive human development.
This is a special year to celebrate their work and congratulate them for their 45th anniversary. Their work couldn’t be completed without the visionary leadership of President Leonor Giménez de Mendoza who also built and preserved in the country one of the most important collections of Venezuelan art. On this respect, Juan Simón Mendoza wrote “…she developed a passion for collecting certain works that, in her opinion, should be kept together due to their historical character. That is the reason why she fought for two famous paintings by Arturo Michelena, Enfant Malade, and Une Visite Eléctorale…. She was also determined to acquire two paintings from the former collection of Don Alfredo Boulton, La maja criolla and La cueva by Armando Reverón: these two are considered among the five best works by the artist. The two Michelena paintings, the two Reverón and her collection of works by Héctor Poleo, perhaps the most important in existence, are now gathered under the same roof and in this way will continue be closely linked to Venezuela”. (*)
It is for this reason that VAEA will honor, for the first time, The Páez Medal of Art to a group, the Fundación Empresas Polar.
*Una visión, una colección, una mujer written by Polly Sartori, Axel Stein, Luis Pérez-Oramas, Roldán Esteva-Grillet, Jorge Rivas Pérez and
Cecilia Fajardo-Hill – Preamble by Juan Simón Mendoza (Pages 197-199) Editorial ExLibris, May 2021.
Click here to see curator Axel Stein guided tour to the exhibition: Una Visión, una colección, una mujer
ABOUT THE PÁEZ MEDAL OF ART
The Páez Medal of Arts is awarded by The Venezuelan American Endowment for the Arts (VAEA) and presented once a year to an individual or group that has had an impact and contributed to excellence, growth, support and the proliferation of the arts and culture in Venezuela and the United States. It is named in honor of José Antonio Páez, leader of the Independence of Venezuela, who lived in exile during his last years in New York, and where he became a philanthropist.
About VAEA
The Venezuelan American Endowment for the Arts ( VAEA) is a New York non for profit founded June 13th 1990 in commemoration of the 200 th anniversary of Jose Antonio Páez.
The foundation supports bi-national programs in the arts of The United States of America and Venezuela.
About the Awards Ceremony
The Medal will be bestowed in New York in Lincoln Center’s David Rubenstein Atrium on December 15 th , 2022
For more information or early tickets reservations write to gala@vaearts.org
www.vaearts.org
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