Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative Celebrates in Venice

Renowned artists and arts leaders from around the world gathered together to celebrate another successful cross-generational artistic collaboration.

      In 2013 10, many of the world's leading artists and international arts leaders gathered in Venice to celebrate the successful conclusion of the year-long 2012-2013 Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. This philanthropic programme aims to help emerging young artists from seven artistic disciplines collaborate with master artists.  

Mr Gian Riccardo Marini, CEO of Rolex

Mr Gian Riccardo Marini, CEO of Rolex, and Rebecca Irvin, Head of Philanthropy at Rolex

      On 21/10, seven mentors from the fields of literature, music, visual arts, dance, film, and architecture—Margaret·Atwood, Gilberto·Gil, William·Kentridge, Lin Hwai-min, Walter·Murch, and Kazuyo Sejima—joined their young protégés for a celebratory dinner held at the famous La Fenice opera house in Venice. Rolex CEO Mr Gian Riccardo Marini personally welcomed nearly 500 guests and hosted the ceremony.

At the celebration dinner

      At the same time, a special ceremony was held that day to mourn the unfortunate passing of this year's theatre mentor, Patrice · Chéreau. Rolex is deeply grateful for his contribution to the Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, and for the infinite wisdom and rich experience he brought to the younger generation.

2012-2013 mentors and proteges: (from left) architecture protege Yang Zhao and mentor Kazuyo Sejima; theatre protege Michal Borzczak; music protege Dina El Wedidi and mentor Gilberto Gil; dance protege Eduardo Fukushima and mentor Lin Hwai-min; film mentor Walter Murch and protege Sara Gail; visual arts mentor William Kentridge and protege Mateo Lopez; literature mentor Margaret Atwood and protege Naomi Alderman.

      On the eve of the celebration, the proteges also showcased their work from the past year at the “Rolex Arts Weekend”. This carefully curated festival took place from 10 to 19 20 at the Fondazione Giorgio Cini in Venice. Originally a Benedictine monastery, the foundation is now fully dedicated to artistic creation and study.

Architecture protege Yang Zhao

      Since its inception in 2002, the Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative held its celebration in Italy for the first time. As a major global centre for the arts, Venice boasts a rich history where a passion for the arts has long taken root and flourished, making it the ideal choice for this celebration.

Protege Naomi Alderman and mentor Margaret Atwood

      Rebecca · Irvin, Head of Philanthropy at Rolex, introduced: “ The passing on of art is the original intention of the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, and Venice is the ideal location to celebrate and showcase this programme. The past year has been extraordinary; the new mentors and protégés were paired up and spent several weeks together. They discussed art, and the collision of inspiration between master and genius has benefited both sides immensely. ” 

Visual arts protege Mateo Lopez

      The value brought by this rare experience is highlighted in the artworks, performances, writings, dialogues, and live works created by the protégés, all of which were presented during the Rolex Arts Weekend. This included the solo dance premiere 'Crooked Man' by dance protégé Eduardo · Fukushima, a work created while under the careful guidance of Lin Hwai-min in Taiwan; as well as a concert by music protégé Dina · El · Wedidi. Wedidi performed songs from her debut album, and mentor Gilberto · Gil also performed on stage with her; he not only mentored Wedidi on the album, but the two also recorded a song together.

Dance protege Eduardo Fukushima

      During the art weekend event, a cross-disciplinary discussion was also held. In the 12-minute conversation, masters of the arts including Lin Hwai-min, Gilberto·Gil, author Wole·Soyinka, and Harvard University literature professor Homi·Bhabha were all in attendance.

2012 - 2013 mentoring year highlights:

      For literature protégé and British writer Naomi · Alderman, that year saw him travel between London, Toronto and New York with Margaret · Atwood to discuss literature, books and the future direction of writing. Sharing a mutual interest in science and technology, they also collaborated on the Wattpad platform to write a short zombie story entitled Happy Zombie Sunrise Home.

      Theatre mentor Patrice · Chéreau travelled to Cracow at the very start of the mentoring cycle to watch his protégé, Polish director Michał · Borczuch, stage his adaptation of Henrik · Ibsen’s play Brand. They later met in Paris, Milan and Aix-en-Provence, where Borczuch was able to observe Chéreau throughout the preparation, rehearsal and performance of Richard · Strauss’s opera Elektra. Coming from different theatrical traditions, the master and protégé engaged in a year-long, passionate debate on the nature and purpose of theatre using contrasting artistic approaches.

      Egyptian music protégé Dina · El · Wedidi stepped onto the world stage right at the beginning of her mentorship under Gilberto · Gil. Alongside accompanying Gil to Montreux, New York and Rio de Janeiro, she performed with her mentor on stage at the London Back2Black Festival, and the pair also performed together when Gil returned to his homeland for the fifth Cairo Jazz Festival. Inspired by Gil, El · Wedidi and her band developed a powerful and distinct individuality.

      Italian film protégé Sara · Fgaier travelled to Cannes, Copenhagen and New York to meet her mentor Walter · Murch, where she attended masterclasses in film editing and gained exposure to a range of advanced editing techniques, which she found immensely beneficial. During her time in the United States, she also had the opportunity to watch Murch edit the documentary Particle Fever.  

      At the invitation of his mentor Lin Hwai-min, Brazilian dance protégé of Asian descent Eduardo · Fukushima spent a year at Cloud Gate Dance Theatre in Taiwan. The change of environment and new cultural experiences, including harvesting rice and taking part in a pilgrimage, encouraged Fukushima to develop an entirely new understanding of physical movement.

      Colombian visual arts protégé Mateo · López ó began his artistic dialogue with mentor William · Kentridge in the United States, which continued dynamically in Amsterdam where Kentridge was performing, and later in Johannesburg, where López spent several weeks working alongside Kentridge in his studio. Kentridge challenged López's artistic approach, pushing him beyond his comfort zone of — — precision drawing and encouraging him to draw inspiration from a wider range of art forms, including performing arts.

      During the mentorship, young Chinese architect Zhao Yang travelled to Japan eight times to receive guidance from his mentor Kazuyo Sejima on the design of “ shared homes ” — “ shared homes ” being residential communities specially designed for those displaced by the 2011 Japanese tsunami. The two architects inspired one another and refined their design concepts repeatedly, their shared passion for architecture transcending differences in age, background and culture.

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