LUGANO, Switzerland, April 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- BE OPEN Art, an online gallery set up by BE OPEN, a humanitarian initiative founded by international businessperson and philanthropist Elena Baturina, is announcing the winners of the first stage of BE OPEN Regional Art Competition in 2025 which covered South Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.
In January, Malinda Jayasinghe, a visual artist from Gampaha, Sri Lanka, was voted the Artist of the Month. Malinda's work explores themes of religious, racial, and gender privilege, as well as complicity in structural oppression using drawing, painting, and sculpture and experimenting with unconventional materials like wood, concrete, and glass. A self-taught artist, he began his artistic career in 2019 after completing a Bachelor's in Economics and Finance. His practice evolved after studying Art History at Theertha International Artists Collective.
In February, the title was given to Khando Wangmo from Mongar, Bhutan. Born in 1996, she was inspired by her brother's paintings from a young age. This early inspiration fueled a determination to pursue art, leading her to join VAST, a renowned NGO that actively promotes, nurtures, and supports local artists in Bhutan, in 2020.
Tandin Chophel, a self-taught artist from Thimphu, Bhutan, became the regional artist of March. Tandin began drawing and painting in 2018. Working with oil, acrylic, and watercolor, he explores the relationship between human emotions and the natural world, driven by a love for capturing the fleeting beauty of nature and time. With no formal art training, Tandin has been researching master artists through books.
And it is Tandin Chophel who has been voted the Artist of the Region for South Asia, and will now be awarded a €500 grant. And another money prize will go to Pema Yangdon, a mixed media artist from the same city of Thimphu in Bhutan, for becoming the founder's choice of the region! Born in 1997, Pema has a lifelong passion for art, seeing it as an essential part of her life. Yangdon enjoys the fluidity of experimenting with different mediums and styles, allowing each piece to unfold according to her inspiration and flow. Her intention is to create work that evokes a sense of wonder, perhaps offering a comforting embrace to the viewer.
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