Entries for the Toyama International Glass Exhibition 2024, which boasts over ¥5,000,000 ($34,800 USD) in awards, are being accepted by Japan’s Toyama Glass Art Museum, organizers of the juried competition. Situated in the heart of the nation’s “Glass City,” the program is described by the institution as a showcase for works “that contribute to the advancement of glass art” and that are “breakthroughs in creative expression.” Submissions will be accepted from artists of any age or nationality, and are open to individuals as well as groups. Each applicant can submit up to two works and there is no entry fee. The deadline for entries is Friday, November 10, 2023.
Launched in 2018 and held triennially, the Toyama International Glass Exhibition 2024 will award a grand prize of ¥3,000,000 ($20,500 USD) for a winning artwork, a gold prize of ¥1,000,000 ($6,800 USD) for a second-place artwork, two silver prizes of ¥300,000 (USD $2,000) for each artwork, and five jury’s prizes of ¥100,000 ($680 USD) for each artwork. Only works created since 2021 are eligible for entry in the 2024 competition program, which will culminate in an exhibition at the Toyama Glass Art Museum from July 13 to October 14, 2024. The second iteration of the juried exhibition, held in 2021, drew over 1,100 entries from fifty countries.
An international jury led by Ruriko Tsuchida, the museum's director, will review artists’ submissions. Rounding out the panel of jurors are Amy Schwartz, director of the Corning Studio; Uta Klotz, editor-in-chief of Neues Glass; Lin Zhang, the founder, director, and executive CEO of the Shanghai Museum of Glass; and Atsuhiko Shima, the director of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, Japan.
Opening in 2015, the Toyama Glass Art Museum was designed by world-renown architect Kengo Kuma. With its striking façade that reflects its surroundings, and an open interior formed of cedar, glass, and mirrors that references Japan’s architectural history, the building houses a working glassmaking studio and is home to the Toyama City Public Library Main Building. The city of Toyama can trace its history in glass production back over 300 years with the development of glass vials used in medicine. Over the past thirty years, Toyama has actively promoted glass art and industrialization as an integral part of the city’s identity and legacy.
HOW TO ENTER:
For more information about how to submit your work for the Toyama International Glass Exhibition 2024, visit their website.