The 2026 Karin Hollweg Prize goes to eghbal joudi

The 2026 Karin Hollweg Prize goes to eghbal joudi. The 36-year-old Meisterschüler (postgraduate master student) at the University of the Arts Bremen was honoured on 25 June at Haus Coburg in Delmenhorst for his serial work Zero-Orbit-Degree. The award, worth 18,000 euros, is one of the most highly endowed prizes for emerging artists in the fine arts in Germany. Half of the prize money is linked to a solo exhibition at the Künstler:innenhaus Bremen. The award has been presented annually since 2007.

The award ceremony took place on 25 June 2026 as part of the exhibition Once You’re There It’s Easy To Find at Haus Coburg | Städtische Galerie Delmenhorst. The Tehran-born artist eghbal joudi was selected by a national jury of museum professionals from a group of 20 Meisterschüler:innen. His solo exhibition, which is being realised using half of the prize money, will take place at the Künstler:innenhaus Bremen. The current 2026 Meisterschüler:innen Exhibition showcases the largest graduating cohort to date from the University of the Arts Bremen and can be viewed at Haus Coburg in Delmenhorst until 2 August 2026 inclusive.

In his work, joudi explores the question of how images of historical events and collective memories come into being. In the exhibition Once You’re There It’s Easy To Find at Haus Coburg, he engages with the history of Iranian society and draws on one of the most significant poems in modern Persian literature. The poem Zemestān (زمستان, "Winter") by the Iranian poet Mehdi Akhavan-Sales was written a few years after the overthrow of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh in 1953. It is widely regarded as a veiled political allegory for the climate of fear, isolation and hopelessness that followed the failure of democratic reforms in Iran.

The artist’s background in sculpture is particularly evident in the installation of his paintings: joudi stages his works spatially. For the installation of his paintings, he selects materials tailored to the exhibition space and involves the visitors by, at Haus Coburg, allowing his paintings to tilt into the space from above—much like the presentation of a textile object—or mounting them freestanding on metal frames. Instead of a traditional hanging arrangement, he detaches the works from the wall, positions them at an angle within the space and lends his paintings a three-dimensional, almost sculptural quality.

“Through this sensory engagement of the audience, he succeeds in transforming an intensive exploration of the consequences of Iranian politics and its iconic photographs into a collective experience. All the stories and images that exist alongside the historically established narratives appear and disappear simultaneously. In doing so, eghbal joudi achieves an impressively contemporary reinterpretation of painterly principles and possibilities […],“ the jury stated.

The Karin Hollweg Prize has been awarded by the Karin and Uwe Hollweg Foundation since 2007 and supports emerging artists in Bremen. It is one of the most generously endowed prizes for fine art in Germany.

Born in Tehran (Iran) in 1990, the artist initially studied sculpture at the Tehran University of Art before commencing his studies in Fine Art at the University of the Arts Bremen in 2020 under Prof. Heike Kati Barath (painting) and Prof. Natascha Sadr Haghighian (sculpture). He most recently completed his postgraduate Meisterschüler studies under Prof. Haghighian. eghbal joudi was recently awarded a full annual scholarship for 2026 by the Janusz Korczak Foundation in Bremen.

The national jury for the 2026 Karin Hollweg Prize comprises Anne Thurmann-Jajes (Head of the Centre for Artists’ Publications, Weserburg Museum of Modern Art), Dr Matilda Felix (Director of the Städtische Galerie Delmenhorst), Dr Arie Hartog (Director of the Gerhard Marcks Haus), Toby Kamps (Head and Curator of Modern Art, Kunsthalle Hamburg), Maxie Kiwitter (Assistant Curator, GAK Society for Contemporary Art), Dr Andreas Kreul (Karin and Uwe Hollweg Foundation), Dr Ingmar Lähnemann (Director of the Städtische Galerie Bremen), Marie Oucherif (Artistic Director, Künstler:innenhaus Bremen), Dr Annett Reckert (Curator, Kupferstichkabinett, Kunsthalle Bremen) and Dr Frank Schmidt (Director, Museen Böttcherstraße).

Bremen University of the Arts 
Gesa Jürß, M.A.
Press and Public Relations / 
Cross-Media Editorial Team
Email: gjuerss@hfk-bremen.de
Telephone: 0421 9595 1037

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