On November 28, a solemn ceremony of awarding the winners of the Corporate Art Awards was held at the European Parliament in Brussels under the auspices of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Activities and Tourism of Italy. The Vladimir Potanin Foundation received an award for support and promotion of contemporary art.

The application included several significant initiatives of the Foundation: the project “Kollektsia! Contemporary art in the URSS and Russia 1950-2000. A major donation” (2016), public discussions in the Tretyakov Gallery “Cultural leadership in the modern world” (2016) and “Culture without borders” (2018) with prominent people from the cultural area from Russia, Europe and America, the donation of the painting of Erik Bulatov “The Picture and Onlookers” (2017) to the Tretyakov Gallery and opening of the space in the New Tretyakov Gallery “The New Tretyakov and Arzamas.academy Lounge”.

Luca Desiata, Curator of the Corporate Art Awards: “Art is the most important component of the Year of Cultural Heritage, which we are all celebrating. Cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, is our common wealth and our message to future generations. It is an irreplaceable repository of knowledge and a reliable source of economic growth, employment and social unity. Cultural heritage enriches lives of hundreds of millions of people and is a source of inspiration for singers and artists, as well as the driver for our cultural and creative industries. The European Parliament has always been promoting cultural diversity in the EU, and it is great that the call for investing into culture is getting louder and louder. I congratulate all the winners and believe that we must continue to promote art and culture in our daily work.”

Oksana Oracheva, General Director of the Foundation: “The Vladimir Potanin Foundation committed to support cultural initiatives that encourage cultural exchange, provide platform for dialogue and new partnerships, and shape a positive image of Russia. We truly believe that culture today unites countries and people. This is part of our mission, and we are doing our best to support cultural institutions to connect and to do their business.”

The Vladimir Potanin Foundation received this award for the second time. In 2016, the Foundation’s initiative on the promotion of Russian contemporary art was recognized as the best philanthropic project.

The International Corporate Art Awards was established in 2016 by pptArt, the first crowdsourcing platform for financing art by corporations and individuals, in collaboration with LUISS Business School, and has been held for several years under the patronage of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Activities and Tourism of Italy. The purpose of the award is to draw public attention to the activities of institutions, commercial organizations and private investors who are actively involved in the development of art and society as a whole. In 2018, 42 organizations from 18 countries were nominated for the award. The following companies are among the nominees: American Express, BMW, Fiat, Collection Pictet, Deutsche Bank, Google Arts & Culture, HBC, Würth Group, etc.