2020 Genesis Prize awarded to Rebecca Salter, President of the Royal Academy of Arts

25 March 2020

A photo of Rebecca Salter stood in front of a black and white art work, wearing a similarly coloured jacket with a black top underneath and a long gold necklace. Rebecca has short grey hair, and is holding her hands together in front of her and smiling at the camera.

The Genesis Foundation today announced Rebecca Salter, President of the Royal Academy of Arts, as the winner of the 2020 Genesis Prize. Worth £25,000, the Genesis Prize is the only prize which recognises outstanding mentoring of artistic talent and gives winners the opportunity to expand on their work.

Ms Salter was selected for the 2020 Genesis Prize for her work as Keeper of the Royal Academy where she was responsible for guiding the RA Schools. Reflecting the crucial role of mentoring in the development of new artistic talent, which is at the core of the Genesis Foundation’s ethos, she will use the prize money to develop a new programme that will provide graduates of the RA School with the professional skills and resilience training needed to survive as practising artists in the commercial world.

John Studzinski, Founder & Chairman of the Genesis Foundation, said:

“I am delighted that the 2020 Genesis Award goes to Rebecca Salter for her work as Keeper of the Royal Academy. Everyone at the Genesis Foundation has been impressed by Rebecca’s passion and commitment to nurturing young artistic talent. Her ability to recognise the changing needs of young artists and to develop practical programmes to support them makes her a worthy winner of the Genesis Award.  We warmly welcome her into the Genesis Foundation’s family of artistic leaders.”

Rebecca Salter said:

“I am delighted to receive the 2020 Genesis Prize in recognition of my work with the students at the Royal Academy Schools. One of the founding principles of the Royal Academy was to have a school of art. Over the last 250 years it has trained artists from JMW Turner RA to Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, many of whom go on to contribute to the artistic and cultural life of the UK and beyond. This prize will enable the RA Schools to develop a new programme teaching resilience and to offer post-graduation support.”

Previous winners of the Genesis Prize are Joe Robertson & Joe Murphy of Good Chance Theatre; Hadrian Garrard, director of Create London; Polly Staple, Director of Collection, British Art, Tate (for her work at Chisenhale Gallery) and Hamish Dunbar, artistic director of Café Oto.

A new Genesis Podcast has been released featuring Rebecca Salter in conversation with psychotherapist and lecturer Barry Smale. Focusing on resilience, the pair discuss the programme Salter is starting at the Royal Academy with her Genesis Prize award. The podcast can be listened to here: https://genesisfoundation.org.uk/arts-podcast/ and on all major platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify and Soundcloud. 

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