2016 Prudential Eye Award winners allege unpaid prize money and unreturned artworks

Six recipients of the 2016 Prudential Eye Award have publicly accused the Singapore-based prize of failing to deliver promised payments and returning exhibited works. In an open letter released on 16 September 2016, artists Svay Sareth, Huang Po Chih, Nguyen Trinh Thi, Manish Nai, and Shumon Ahmed detailed their grievances regarding financial compensation ranging from US$20,000 to US$30,000. Only Svay Sareth, honored as Asia's best emerging artist at a 19 January ceremony, has reportedly received partial payment. Huang Po Chih specifically noted that artwork displayed at the Prudential Eye Finalist Award Exhibition, which concluded 27 March at Art Science Museum Singapore, remains unreturned. A planned exhibition of Svay Sareth's work during London's START Art Fair from 15-18 September was canceled after contract negotiations stalled. The artists claim they were assured payments would arrive by mid-September. Established in 2014 through a collaboration between Parallel Contemporary Art, Saatchi Gallery, and Prudential, the Prudential Eye Programme administers the awards.