BE OPEN Art, an online art gallery set up by BE OPEN think tank, a humanitarian initiative founded by international businessperson and philanthropist Elena Baturina, is running a new competition for emerging artists, aimed to support those whose art best represents their regional, cultural and ethnic identities – BE OPEN Regional Art.
Every month over July – September 2023, works by 20 emerging artists from the countries of Southeast Asia: Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam were posted at the online gallery for the public to select the Regional Artist of the Month.
In July, August and September the titles were given to Maziyah Yussof, a multidisciplinary artist from Brunei; Dabi Arnasa, an artist from Bali; and another artist from Bali with artistic name Awshitttttt, consecutively
Based on the amount of votes by the public and BE OPEN’s art community members, the August winner Awshitttttt has become the Artist of the Region for Southeast Asia. The artist will be offered a grant of 500 euro from BE OPEN.
A self-taught artist born in 1996 has had a passion for drawing and illustration since he was a child. Awshitttttt is now a professional artist focusing on digital painting and large-scale public murals. Portrait paintings, illustrations, and urban art are his artistic fields of expertise. His trademark is incorporating the delicate and iconic daisy flower as a representation of peace, love, and positivity.
The Founder of BE OPEN Elena Baturina also selected her favourite artist in the region – Chau le Thai Huyen, a digital painter from Vietnam, who describes her own style as “impulsive and like a naive child with constructing and harmonious colors and bold composition.”
On the 1st of October, the focus of the competition moved to Central Africa.
The regional competition runs alongside the regular ongoing work of BE OPEN Art, whose experts every month select 20 new artists for the gallery, and the public names the Artist of the Month and Year.