Astaire Art Prize 2022 – winners announced | Edinburgh College of Art Graduate Show 2022

Astaire Art Prize 2022 – winners announced

Mia Takemoto won first prize with Imogen Luczyc-Wyhowska, Olivia-Anna Boden and Ella Moore-Hughes taking runner-up prizes.

The artist Mia Takemoto standing in front of her 5 panelled work, 'Roots and Routes',

Artist Mia Takemoto in front of her work, 'Roots and Routes'.

On Monday 6 June 2022, judges reviewed work submitted for the year’s Astaire Art Prize.

The annual award, running since 2018, recognises outstanding undergraduate work by students at Edinburgh College of Art (ECA). It was established by University of Edinburgh graduate Mark Astaire.

Mark said, “I am a great believer in the importance of art and artists and an enormous fan of ECA, which is a great art school. The thinking behind the prize was to find a way of giving some encouragement to talented artists as they are about to leave the school. Being part of the judging panel is enormously enjoyable but choosing the winners is never easy.”

"My artwork celebrates transnationality and cultural hybridity. In ‘Roots and Routes’, I examine the places I feel rooted in and the places I have routed through. I'm interested in how movement shapes a dynamic identity."

Mia Takemoto, MA (Hons) Fine Art student and Astaire Art Prize 2022 winner.

Two swimmers painted onto a wooden board, with waves around them

Detail of Mia Takemoto's 'Roots and Routes' work.

Mia Takemoto, MA (Hons) Fine Art, won the top award of £3,000 for her work entitled ‘Roots and Routes’.

Three runners-up won prizes of £750 each: Imogen Luczyc-Wyhowska, MA (Hons) Fine Art; Olivia-Anna Boden, BA (Hons) Painting; and Ella Moore-Hughes, BA (Hons) Photography.

Mia said, “My artwork celebrates transnationality and cultural hybridity. In ‘Roots and Routes’, I examine the places I feel rooted in and the places I have routed through. I'm interested in how movement shapes a dynamic identity.

“My movements through England, Japan, Scotland, Australia and Canada are captured in these amalgamated yet fragmented landscapes, composed of my real and imagined memories. The figures in the paintings journey through these landscapes; their micro journeys reflect the macro migration paths taken by myself and my family.”