Abbas Akhavan of Toronto wins lucrative Sobey Art Award

HALIFAX – Toronto-based Abbas Akhavan has won this year’s $50,000 Sobey Art Award.

The Tehran native beat out four other finalists for the prize during a gala at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in Halifax on Wednesday.

“The jury wanted to underline the generosity and empathy at play in Abbas’ work,” the curatorial panel that chose him said in a statement.

“Through a fugitive practice that resists fixed meaning, Akhavan reasserts that power and engagement are always relevant subjects for examination.”

Akhavan has exhibited around the world through site-specific ephemeral installations, drawing, video, sculpture and performance.

His recent works have focused on things just outside the home, from the garden to the backyard and other domesticated landscapes.

The other four finalists will each receive $10,000.

All of the finalists’ works will remain on display at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia’s Halifax location until Jan. 3.

The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia organizes and administers the award, which was created in 2002 by the Sobey Art Foundation.