Virgin Megastore Is Seeking The Next Big Artist

One Artist Will Be Chosen To Receive the Prize of a Lifetime

Dubai, UAE - March 20th, 2014: Virgin Megastore is now accepting submissions for all UAE resident visual artists where one winner will have their work displayed next to originals of Andy Warhol, Picasso, Salvador Dali and other legendary artists at The Big Picture Exhibition, May 10th-20th. In addition, the chosen artist will be signed and represented by Pro Art Gallery for one year, receive a Virgin Megastore gift voucher and a Libratone wireless speaker.

Artists can enter the competition and submit their artwork on the Virgin Megastore website, www.virginmegastore.me/TheBigArtist. Virgin Megastore is accepting Visual Art limited to works with maximum dimensions of 2M x 3M x 2M from all UAE residents. Submission deadline is April 20th. Five finalists will be chosen by the Virgin Megastore Creative and Marketing teams. The five finalists will then present their artwork in front of five judges from the UAE’s Art community at a public event at Virgin Megastore, Mall of the Emirates on April 30th where the winner will be selected and become The Big Artist.

“The Art scene in the UAE has exponentially grown over the past few years, hosting great initiatives and events. This year’s unique collaboration with The Big Picture aims at finding the next Big Artist and helping make their dream come true. Virgin Megastore continues to support the UAE’s growing Art community and we hope such opportunities will inspire and motivate young, creative talent,” said Tarek Moussawer, Regional Marketing Manager, Virgin Megastore Middle East.

The Big Picture Art Exhibition is now in its second year running and will be held at Pro Art Gallery in Palm Strip Mall, Jumeirah. The BIG Picture is an independent art exhibition; self-funded and organized by participating artists. The 2013 edition concept was inspired by a fast and busy society that often magnifies minor issues and gets caught up in the details of a demanding daily schedule, while ignoring the vision and the essence of where we are all heading as collectives or individuals and neglecting the significance of the journey and the overall process we each follow.

The Big Picture demolishes boundaries and gives artists the freedom to express their interpretation of its philosophy, freeing it from art politics, galleries’ profitable guidelines and the fame-driven market, while emphasizing the importance of it via large pieces. It is an exhibition that does not limit the artists with commercial factors and allows them to concentrate on art for purely art’s sake.

The exhibition is also going to have original works by legendary artists such as Picasso, Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, Roy Liechtenstein, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Bansky. Those remarkable works are going to be curated alongside artworks by more than 30 artists from the UAE.