Competition for “Erste Fragments 12” announced

Zagreb, 25 February 2016 – For the 12^th time in a row, Erste&Steiermärkische Bank d.d. (Erste Bank) announced the “Erste Fragments” competition, inviting all young artists 30 years or younger and art school students to apply their works by 25 March 2016. This is Erste Bank’s traditional project that supports young aspiring artists, enabling them to present their art, by buying their works and granting them cash prizes and scholarships. The HRK 10,000 cash Grand Prix will be presented to the artist whose work (sculpture, painting, graphics or installation) is deemed the best by a jury of experts. The winner will also get the opportunity to stage a solo exhibition. Additionally, a special audience award will be presented, in the amount of HRK 3,000, and one annual scholarship in the amount of HRK 1,000 per month, for which art school students from Zagreb, Rijeka, Osijek and Split are eligible.

The works of art to be purchased will be chosen by the jury of experts composed of: Matica hrvatska Gallery manager Vanja Babić, Dean of the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb Aleksandar Battista Ilić, Jutarnji list daily art critic Patricia Kiš, academic painter Sebastijan Dračić, curator and art manager Vanja Žanko, and head of Erste bank’s urban culture platform – Urbanka Antonia Jurić.

By purchasing works of art, Erste Bank is looking to provide young and largely unknown artists to further work and education, and eventually to present their work to a wider audience. After the competition ends, an exhibition will be staged in the Kranjčar Gallery in Zagreb, where all the purchased and awarded works will be displayed.

The beginning of this year’s edition of Erste Fragments will be marked by a solo exhibition of last year’s winner Lana Stojićević, which opens on 3 March in the Kranjčar Gallery.

The first “Erste Fragments” competition was organised in 2002 and over the past 11 editions more than 150 works of art by young Croatian artists have been collected, which are today displayed at more than 130 Erste Bank locations (outlets and offices) in Croatia. Authors of the many works of art that were purchased, such as Tanja Deman, Sebastijan Dračić, Ivan Fijolić, Alem Korkut, Ines Matijević Cakić, Lala Raščić, Zlatan Vehabović, Matko Vekić, and many others, in the meantime became prominent names of Croatia’s art scene.

More on applications to the competition is available at www.erstebank.hr