Praemium Imperiale

高松宮殿下記念世界文化賞

Sculpture + Painting / Photography

1989-2025

International art awards

The Praemium Imperiale, literally “World Culture Prize” was founded in 1989 at the suggestion of the Japanese Imperial Family in memory of Prince Takamatsu (1905-87) and sees itself as a “Nobel Prize for the Arts”. Prince Takamatsu, former president of the “Japan Art Association” wished to “contribute widely to the spread and improvement of world culture and art”. The prize is endowed with a monetary amount of 15 million yen each. Artists and cultural practitioners are honoured “for their achievements, for the influence they exert internationally in the arts, and for their enrichment of the world community”. The prize is annually awarded for a lifetime’s artistic achievement in five categories: painting, sculpture, architecture, music and theatre/film.