Call for Submissions: 11th International Awards for Art Criticism (IAAC 11)
Deadline: September 14 (24:00 UK Time), 2025
First Prize: 80,000 RMB (pre-tax) + residency in Shanghai or London
Second Prizes (3 winners): 30,000 RMB (pre-tax) each
On June 7, 2025, the 11th International Awards for Art Criticism (IAAC 11) was officially launched at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, inviting submissions of art reviews in Chinese or English from around the globe. IAAC 11 is jointly organized by the IAAC Organizing Committee, the School of Philosophy at Fudan University, and the Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum, with support from the Royal College of Art in London and the Edinburgh College of Art.
At the launch ceremony, Lewis Biggs, curator and member of the IAAC Organizing Committee, stated: “Over the past decade of IAAC, we are delighted to receive reviews from more than 50 different countries. I should say that I use the word ‘review’ and ‘criticism’ to mean the same thing – anyone who writes a review of an art exhibition is involved in art criticism. the practice of criticism is the same whether it is reviewing art, exhibitions, poems, films, architecture, theatre or political manifestos – in fact, any cultural production. The practice of criticism is closely related to education, to intelligence and creativity and to all that is positive in human affairs. Today, much art writing is limited to praise and does not engage with questioning the art under review that it is useless. If art reviews were less bland, if they involved more thinking, they would have more effect. Like art itself – and the whole of cultural production – art criticism belongs to the symbolic world rather than to the first-order material world. We should not expect cultural production or cultural criticism to change the world directly. But culture and its criticism does change people. And then people change the material world. ’
Shen Yubing, Professor at the School of Philosophy at Fudan University, and Executive Dean of the Fudan University Art Research Institute, remarked: “The current art ecosystem faces dual crises: the dilution of local experiences under accelerated globalization and the decline of criticism in the age of social media. We hope art criticism can shoulder three responsibilities: serving as a critical anchor, a translator of locality, and an agent of thought. Art criticism is not merely a tool to interpret works but a way to understand the world. Amid the torrents of globalization and locality, we envision IAAC as a vessel to reclaim the courage of criticism and the power of judgment.”
Hu Zhe, Deputy Director of the Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum, one of IAAC’s organizers, added: “Launching IAAC at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts pays tribute to Lingnan’s artistic heritage while advancing global dialogue in art criticism. As an organizer, we aim to discover critiques that balance intellectual rigor with humanistic care, fostering artistic innovation and cultural exchange.”
Concurrent with the IAAC 11 launch, the forum “Radical ‘Terroir’: Southern Narratives and Art Writing” was held at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, exploring how regional experiences in literature, art practice, and critical writing can inspire cross-cultural expressions. Fan Bo, President of the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, noted: “Addressing topics like ‘Southern Narratives’ or the ‘Global South,’ our academy leverages its position in the Greater Bay Area to engage with South China, Southeast Asia, and broader Southern regions. Through initiatives like the Pan-Southeast Asia Triennial and the Southeast Asian Art Research Center, we contribute to these critical global discussions.”
The IAAC 11 International Jury
Alfredo Cramerotti, Curator, Writer, Publisher, Director of the Media Majlis Museum at Northwestern Qatar, and President of IKT
Ying KWOK, Senior Curator, Tai Kwun Contemporary, Hong Kong
Ning OU, Artist, Curator, Writer, and Founder of ISOGLOSS (New York-based)
Filipa Ramos, Writer, Curator, and Lecturer at the Art Institute, FHNW Academy of Art and Design, Basel
Bernhard Schulz, Berlin-based Art Critic specializing in art, architecture, and cultural politics
Submissions
- Submissions must review contemporary art exhibitions held globally or online between September 1, 2024, and August 31, 2025. Entries must be unpublished, with a 2,500-word limit for Chinese and 1,500 words for English.
- The deadline is September 14 (24:00 UK Time), 2025.
- Applicants must register on the IAAC website (www.iaac-m21.com) and submit their work online.
- The jury will anonymously select 20 shortlisted entries (10 in Chinese, 10 in English).
Prizes include
- First Prize: 80,000 RMB (pre-tax) + residency in Shanghai or London
- Second Prizes (3 winners): 30,000 RMB (pre-tax) each
Shortlisted works will be published bilingually in The 11th IAAC Annual Exhibition Reviews in summer 2026.
