14 November 2025

Young Generation Art Award 2026 – Shortlist exhibition at Gendarmenmarkt

The Young Generation Art Award, initiated by Degussa Goldhandel in cooperation with the art magazine Monopol, is entering its second year. Through an open call, artists up to the age of 35 were invited to apply – with great success: around 400 applications were received. The five finalists who have made it onto the shortlist for the Young Generation Art Award 2026 have now been selected.

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Ken Nwadiogbu wins the Young Generation Art Award 2026

The Young Generation Art Award

The Young Generation Art Award enters its second round

The Young Generation Art Award is aimed at emerging artists at the beginning of their careers. Its goal is to support young talent and accompany them on their path into the professional art world. From the five nominated positions, an expert jury selects the winner of the prize. The prize money amounts to €10,000. In addition, each shortlist nomination is endowed with €3,000.

On 28 November 2025, the exhibition of the five nominees of the Young Generation Art Award 2026 will open in Berlin at Gendarmenmarkt. The selected artists will present their latest works there – powerful, surprising and inspiring. From 28 November 2025 to 6 March 2026, the exhibition invites visitors to immerse themselves in the diverse forms of expression of young art and discover the creativity of a new generation.

The jury

The jury once again consists of renowned figures from the art world (from left to right)

Yilmaz Dziewior, Director of Museum Ludwig in Cologne
Maya Heckelmann, curator and responsible for art and cultural sponsorship at Degussa
Elke Buhr, editor-in-chief of Monopol

The shortlist 2026

Arne Grashoff

Arne Grashoff, born in 1995 in southern Germany, transforms photography into sculptures by printing it onto transparent PVC films and staging it in space. His works address identity, gender and a sensitive depiction of queer bodies. He studied communication design in Stuttgart and photography in Leipzig before beginning his studies in sculpture at the Berlin University of the Arts in 2025, where he also lives and works.

Emmélie Lempert

Emmélie Lempert, born in 1998 in Bonn, creates textile objects reminiscent of historical corsets and explores centuries-old social ideas of the ideal body. Her works, often in skin-toned hues, express ideas of bodies that dream, desire or are desired. The artist studied psychology in Berlin and fine art in Düsseldorf, where she graduated in 2024. She lives and works in Bonn and Berlin.

Ken Nwadiogbu

Ken Nwadiogbu, born in 1994 in Lagos, Nigeria, is a multidisciplinary artist who combines hyperrealistic painting with abstract elements. His luminous yellow figures reflect themes such as Black identity, migration and social prejudice. He initially studied engineering before turning to art and completing a Master’s degree in Painting at the Royal College of Art in London, where he now lives and works.

Lunita July Dorn

Lunita July Dorn, born in 1999 in Berlin, creates large-format figurative portraits, often depicting herself with a cigarette and symbolic details. Her works are created spontaneously without preliminary sketches – often drawing on certain phrases or song lyrics. They combine personal memories with a poetic visual language. She has been studying with Friederike Feldmann at the Weissensee Academy of Art in Berlin since 2020, where she lives and works.

Yuhao Chen

Yuhao Chen, born in 1991 in China, combines traditional painting with modern digital technology in his paintings, often using AI-generated images as a basis. His works usually depict female figures in imaginary spaces between interior and exterior, nature and architecture, creating an ambivalent, poetic atmosphere. Chen studied at the China Academy of Art and at the Academy of Fine Arts Munich, where he graduated in 2023 as a master student under Anke Doberauer. He lives and works in Munich.