"The First Move," a showcase of finalists for the 2002 Philip Morris Art Award, opens this Saturday at Tokyo International Forum. On display until May 6, the exhibition includes paintings, photographs, 3-D pieces, videos, installations and computer-generated work by 57 young artists selected from more than 1,095 entries. The 10 award winners, to be announced May 1, will then have their works shown in New York at the Museum of Modern Art's PS1 Contemporary Art Center.
This year marks the fourth biennial Philip Morris competition, Japan's largest in the world of contemporary art. Given the scope of the works reviewed by the jury, the award plays a major role in kick-starting the careers of Japan's up-and-coming artists.
Judge Alanna Heiss (deputy director of MOMA, New York) was impressed by a common theme among this year's entrants. "Many of the artists, across the media, were exploring an anti- or sub-technological attitude," she said.