BOSS Debuts Outstanding Achievement Award at Art Basel 2025 to Celebrate Contemporary Art and Expand Global Reach
BOSS is proud to announce the establishment of the BOSS AWARD for Outstanding Achievement in the world of contemporary art. Each year, as part of the annual Art Basel Awards cycle, Art Basel and BOSS will present the BOSS Award for Outstanding Achievement, conceived by BOSS in partnership with Art Basel Awards. This award celebrates work that pairs global visibility with purpose-driven vision-and embodies the values of BOSS: boldness, personal authenticity, ambition, and responsibility. The award honors a singular work, produced within the last 18 months, that has catalyzed cultural change at the intersection of art, technological innovation, social dialogue, and identity.
Selected by a jury from a pool of nominees recognized by Art Basel for their artistic skill and momentum, the award will recognize an artist, designer, or interdisciplinary practitioner whose recent work has made a significant impact beyond the contemporary art world, becoming a touchstone across fashion, art, commerce, and mass culture.
The new BOSS AWARD for Outstanding Achievement was revealed last night at Kunstmuseum Basel in Basel, Switzerland, at the debut Art Basel Awards Medalist Reception. The premier event was hosted by Art Basel in honor of the 36 inaugural Art Basel Awards Medalists named last month.
The prize is open to all living artists, working in any medium, including Art Basel Awards Medalists in the artist and cross-disciplinary creator categories. Nominations and final selection for the award will be made by a dedicated jury, appointed by BOSS and Art Basel, including Marco Falcioni, Senior Vice President of Creative Direction at HUGO BOSS, and representatives from the art world.
Carrying a prize value of US$100,000, the BOSS AWARD for Outstanding Achievement will empower the awardee to amplify voices beyond their own, with a reward of US$50,000 to be directed to a community or cause of the artist’s choosing. The remaining US$50,000 will be invested in a project, commission, or cultural activation by the artist, co-developed with BOSS.
“The BOSS AWARD for Outstanding Achievement and our partnership with Art Basel Awards allows us to engage actively with culture, and connect with our fans beyond fashion. It aligns BOSS with forward-thinking and culturally relevant creativity, echoing our brand values of innovation, style leadership, and authenticity. The BOSS AWARD recipient will also be a ‘BOSS’ who shares these qualities,” says Marco Falcioni, Senior Vice President of Creative Direction at HUGO BOSS.
Launched earlier this year, Art Basel Awards confers honors to Meda lists across nine categories spanning the contemporary art industry-path-breaking artists, cross-disciplinary creators, curators, institutions, patrons, media and storytellers, and behind-the-scenes allies who are shaping the next generation of cutting-edge artistry.
Medals reward ongoing practices and contributions which are actively redefining or show significant potential to redefine artistic horizons. Later this year, the Meda lists will pilot a peer-driven process, whereby they will vote to select 12 Gold Meda lists from among themselves, representing Art Basel Awards’ highest honor.
Vincenzo de Bellis, Chief Artistic Officer and Global Director of Art Basel Fairs, and Chair of Art Basel Awards, says, “The BOSS AWARD for Outstanding Achievement is a powerful addition the Art Basel Awards ecosystem-honoring a recent work that broke through the cultural mainstream and significantly influenced conversations across art and society. This collaboration underscores Art Basel Awards’ commitment to recognizing bold artistic practices that are still evolving, still unfolding, and already driving real-world impact.
Together, we aim to amplify the voices redefining contemporary culture and expand the global reach and resonance of boundary-pushing creative work.”
As presenting partner of Art Basel Awards, BOSS aims to recognize those driving the future of art through their pioneering vision, skill, and impact on the broader cultural landscape. The HUGO BOSS Group has a 30-year history of art sponsorship. BOSS’s support of Art Basel Awards represents a new level of commitment, and a continuation of the company’s dedication to inspiring discovery and dialog at the intersection of fashion and art. It provides BOSS with the opportunity to back artists, organizations, and initiatives with distinct perspectives, making a real-world impact, and to align with cutting-edge cultural voices and aesthetic innovators. They also aim to help amplify contemporary art among broader global cultural audiences.
The BOSS AWARD for Outstanding Achievement will be presented alongside the Art Basel Awards Gold Medals in December 2025, at the Official Night of the Art Basel Awards in Miami Beach, Florida, USA.
©2025 BOSS
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