“Sometimes referred to as the ‘Nobel Prize of the Arts,’ [the Japan Art Association’s] Praemium Imperiale is one of the world’s most important art prizes [given] to artists and musicians at the top of their careers in five different categories each year,” reads an unsigned article in Tuesday’s (9/14) Deutsche Welle (Germany). In addition to awards to photographer Sebastião Salgado, visual artist James Turrell, and architect Glenn Murcutt, “the award in the Music category goes to the U.S. cellist and classical music pioneer Yo-Yo Ma…. The Young Artist Award goes to the Advanced Training School for the Central Institute for Restoration (ICR) in Italy, which trains art restorers…. Yo-Yo Ma is [an] 18-time Grammy-winner … known for his fondness for musical collaborations … Last year, he [released] a music video of a solo interpretation of Dvořák’s ‘Goin’ Home,’ which has since been viewed more than 18 million times. This year, [he played] ‘Ave Maria’ in the waiting room of vaccination center in Massachusetts…. Previous [Praemium Imperiale] winners include violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, actress Catherine Deneuve, designer Issey Miyake, director Martin Scorsese, choreographer Pina Bausch and painter Gerhard Richter.”
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