“It’s hard to be an artist! It really is,” mused Kate Bosworth at the Hugo Boss Prize 2016 announcement at the Guggenheim last night. “It’s a very vulnerable space. I always say, I don’t think artists are born with a thick skin. They’re actually not really meant to have one. They’re supposed to be fluid. And yet, the world we live in, particularly now, is one where there is so much comment and criticism and also a lot of support. Like this. Like tonight. I’m very happy to be here to be able to do that, in this kind of environment.”
The actress, who attended with her old friend Jason Wu, was speaking after the announcement of Anicka Yi as the 2016 Hugo Boss Prize winner. Bosworth was joined by Zachary Quinto, Toni Garrn, Anja Rubik, Jamie Campbell Bower, and more in celebration. The artist had just taken the stage to accept the award—and the $100,000 prize given with it—from the museum’s director, Richard Armstrong, and Hugo Boss AG CEO, Mark Langer.
“She’s a magnificent artist and we can’t wait to get started, truly,” said Guggenheim curator Katherine Brinson, who will work on Yi’s upcoming April show at the museum, as guests sipped on Champagne and snacked on sea bass crudo. “We will hit the ground running with Anicka who has an exceptionally fertile, incisive, rigorous practice. I’m sure that we’ll meet almost immediately. Well, we’ll give her a few days to get over tonight’s festivities! But then I’m really excited to start plotting out her work. It will be a wild ride, I’m sure, but in the best way.”