A Vibrant 10th Edition, Between Emerging Art and Shared Emotions

On April 24, 2025, the 10th edition of the Juvernars Prize took place, an art event that has become a staple of the school, passionately led by Bachelor 1 Art Market students. Supervised by Hafida Jemni Di Folco, the students ran this project from A to Z: from the call for applications to the scenography of the final exhibition, including the careful selection of artists, in line with their personal tastes and emerging trends.

Each group was assigned an artist, supported through genuine work in mediation, research, and exhibition design. This project allowed these future professionals to have a first experience of exhibition curation in real conditions, concluding their year with an ambitious group exhibition and the presentation of an award by a jury of professionals: curators, journalists, and institution directors.

The Artists in the Running: A Diversity of Approaches and Worlds

The artists selected for this exhibition present varied approaches, at the crossroads of history, culture, and contemporary social issues.

Louise Janet explores painting as a medium of slowness and memory. By weaving visual narratives through recurring motifs and multi-temporal compositions, she questions the trace left by everyday life. A 2023 graduate of the Beaux-Arts de Paris, she already exhibits internationally.

Julie Giblot Ducray, an artist from Mauritius, paints figures in harmony with intimate, memory-laden landscapes. Her work blends painting and natural elements, such as the earth or sand of her native island, in a quest for roots and identity.

Maïssane Alibrahimi, a French-Moroccan artist, repurposes symbolic materials such as sugar to question femininity and patriarchal norms. Her transgressive and poetic work creates fragile, critical, and deeply political installations.

Abigahël Dantzer, an artist from Nantes, blends figuration and abstraction to evoke injustice, resilience, and migration. Her committed art becomes a medium of transmission and memory, a voice for those who are no longer heard.

João Delfim, a graduate of the Arts Décoratifs de Paris, explores homosexual desire and queer identity through a practice combining printmaking, fanzine, micro-publishing, and collage. His sensitive, narrative world draws on the "gay awakening" and on literary figures such as Edmund White and Oscar Wilde.

Agat Domino, for her part, develops a body of work centered on paper, fragmented narration, and splintered figures. Committed to collective dynamics, she questions forms of memory and narration by combining printed image, text, and graphic gesture.

An Emotional Award Ceremony

The award evening took place in a warm, family atmosphere, in the heart of a gallery filled with students, relatives, curious visitors, and of course the artists accompanied by their families. Some were moved to see their work in the spotlight for the first time in such a professional setting.

But above all, the jury’s deliberation was more than difficult. The debates were intense and passionate, given how high the level of the artists was and how powerful and singular their approaches were. The jury hesitated at length, argued, and weighed every detail before reaching a final decision.

Amid impatient murmurs and attentive glances, the long-awaited announcement was finally made to the warm applause of the audience.

The 2025 Winner: João Delfim

João Delfim was awarded the 2025 Juvernars Prize, praised for the originality of his approach, his sensitive visual storytelling, and his sharp eye on the construction of queer identities.

At the ceremony, João spoke to thank the students who supported him, as well as the jury. He stressed how much this prize represents a symbolic and concrete springboard for emerging artists, while recalling the importance of diverse narratives in contemporary art.

As the winner, João Delfim will receive a prize of €3000 and a solo exhibition in 2026, organized by the school. A fine recognition and a valuable opportunity to further develop his work.

An Inspiring Edition

The 2025 Juvernars Prize was, for both the artists and the students, an immersive, collective, and professionalizing experience. They learned to collaborate, to defend an artistic project, to speak in public, and to put together an exhibition from A to Z.

And above all, they will have shared the thrill of a common passion for contemporary art.

Congratulations to all participants for this memorable edition – and here’s to the next one!