The Gaudenz B. Ruf Award
was set up in 2007 by a Swiss national who lived in Bulgaria from 1995 to 2000, during which time he became acquainted with the rich cultural life of the country and convinced of its artistic potential.
The Award is financed through a fund established in Switzerland.
The aim of the Award is to promote and propagate artistic expression in Bulgaria in the field of visual arts and to focus in particular on the younger generation.
From 2007 until 2011 the Award was granted annually to one young and one advanced artist within the framework of a competition. During those five years more than 560 candidates competed for the prize and 79 artists were shortlisted. The works of the shortlisted artists were presented at the yearly Award exhibitions and published in catalogues (cf. Archive).
From 2012 until 2018 the funds of the Gaudenz B. Ruf Award availed support to the creation of art works by Bulgarian artists and to events presenting contemporary Bulgarian art in Bulgaria and abroad.
Finally, in 2019 the Gaudenz B. Ruf Award celebrates the last year of its existence by organizing once more a competition, for young artists aged not more than forty, and the subsequent exhibition “Finale”.