Selma Selman wins 12th edition of ABN AMRO Art Award

The jury admires Selman’s unique and fearless attitude and the manner in which she takes her experiences as a woman who grew up in a Roma family during and after the Bosnian War and translates them into current and universal themes. Coming from a family of scrap dealers, she has a keen awareness of the importance of recycling and transformation. The jury enthusiastically admires the way in which she makes that transformation the very essence of her work, raising questions about economic structures, minorities and prejudices. This is evident, for instance, in her Paintings on Metal, an ongoing series of works involving scrap metal that she paints on, giving these rugged objects an unexpectedly sensitive and often surrealistic twist. In another example, she elevates the work of scrap dealers into performances in which she addresses topics such as discrepancies within economic and social valuations of labour and art.

Activism, female emancipation and gold

The jury also commends Selman’s activist approach and the way in which she uses her work to question and improve the position of women and girls from the Roma community. The strength and independence of women in a patriarchal society is a central theme of her work time and time again. Furthermore, the jury is impressed by the way she manages to link her recently developed method for extracting gold from computer circuit boards to the independence of women from her community. Selman uses the foundation she created, Get The Heck To School, to promote better education for girls, including girls in her home town of Bihać, so that a different life path from the standard one set out for them might become possible. The fact that Selman considers this foundation integral to her artistic work is appreciated by the jury as characteristic of her practice.

Danila Cahen, curator of the ABN AMRO Art Collection and member of the ABN AMRO Art Award jury: “In the jury’s view, Selma Selman is an inspiring artist with a distinct and unique body of work. It is both powerful and vulnerable. Furthermore, the social impact of her work makes us think about discrimination, prejudices and human rights.”

While making her mark in recent years with significant exhibitions abroad, Selma Selman remains relatively unknown to a wider Dutch audience. The jury believes her work deserves more attention in the Netherlands and deems this an excellent moment to support her in that endeavour. This is why, as part of the ABN AMRO Art Award, Selma Selman will be invited to hold a solo exhibition at Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam in late January 2025.

Rein Wolfs, Director of Stedelijk Museum: “Selma Selman’s work is unique due to her ability to transform personal experiences and recycled scrap metal into powerful art combined with incredibly strong performances that challenge economic and social structures and promote female emancipation. We are therefore proud to offer the 12th winner of the Art Award a platform at Stedelijk Museum.”

Main Image :Portret Selma Selman, foto Janiek Dam