Montblanc Cultural Foundation Awards JAMAC with Arts Patronage Prize in Brazil

The Montblanc Cultural Foundation will award its Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Prize to JAMAC (Jardim Miriam Arte Clube) on September 6, marking the third Brazilian edition of the award. The foundation, led since 2016 by curators Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath, established a global Curatorium network, with Jochen Volz, director of São Paulo's Pinacoteca, serving as the Brazilian curator. The prize recognizes cultural patrons across 17 countries. JAMAC was founded in 2003 by artist Mônica Nador, who moved from the elite Higienópolis neighborhood to São Paulo's marginalized southern zone to create an artistic space for the community. Key collaborators include community leader Mauro de Castro and filmmaker Thais Scabio, who joined after JAMAC's 2006 participation in the São Paulo Biennial curated by Lisette Lagnado. The club offers workshops in graffiti, printing, and cinema. Nador's initial 'colonizing' perspective transformed through deep community engagement, leading to her current dream of securing a permanent headquarters for JAMAC. The foundation also commissions emerging artists globally for major art events like biennials. Previous Brazilian award recipients were filmmakers Luiz Bolognesi and Laís Bodanzky (2016) for Cine Mambembe and Solange Farkas (2017) for Associação Cultural Videobrasil.