New Continental Talents to Emerge Soon From BIC Art MasterAfrica 2019 Competition

Leading global stationery brand, BIC is organizing its first continent-wide art competition tagged, BIC Art Master Africa 2019. The competition, which aims to foster local creativity, invites African talents to create artwork using the BIC® Ball Pen as their medium.

This is not the first edition of the programme as the BIC Art Master competition was first held in South Africa in 2017 and 2018.

Following the success of the campaign in South Africa, the brand decided to expand the competition to include all African countries. Artists residing in Africa were given the opportunity to submit up to three pieces of art on the competition’s site, bicartmaster.com until the 31^st of October, for a chance to be titled BIC Art Master Africa champion. The platform has been open for the public to vote for their favourite artwork during this entire month of November.

Yemi, Ojo, Country Business Development Manager revealed that BIC was originally founded on one hero product, BIC’s Cristal® ballpoint pen, that served as an essential tool for people everywhere. In his words "As we expanded our range of ballpoint pens, we saw consumers around the world redefine how they used our signature blue ink. BIC Art Master was born from our connection with art and creativity with the objective to create a platform that recognizes local talent around Africa.”

 The competition will recognize two winners at a special award this December, including a ‘BIC Art Master Africa 2019’ winner and a ‘People’s Choice 2019’ prize winner. The competition’s champion will be selected by a panel of experts including Ghanaian artist and sculptor, Enam Bosokah; professor and designer, Hein Liebenberg; renowned artists and interior designer, Valerie Manouvrier; professional curator and art advisor, Herve Mikaeloff; and avid art enthusiast and collector and member of BIC’s founding family, Geoffroy Bich.

The winner will receive a USD 1,000 cash prize, a personalized digital gallery space, and a chance to be featured as part of BIC’s art collection, La BIC Collection. The ‘People’s Choice’ prize winner will be selected based on the highest number of votes received by the public and will be granted a cash prize of USD 500 as well as a BIC Artistry Kit.

BIC Art Master Africa 2019 will also look to recognize consumers who engage with the competition by selecting one ‘Lucky Voter’ of those that voted on the competition’s website and one ‘Lucky Influencer’ winner, of those that posted about the competition on social platforms using the #BICArtMaster hashtag. Both winners will be selected at random and will receive a prize worth USD 250 each.

BIC’s connection to art spans more than 60 years, as the brand has provided platforms for artists  around the world find great inspiration in creating portraits, designs, sculptures, and installations from the brand’s iconic products. The brand regularly works with artists, designers, curators, and institutions around the world on creative projects and expositions. Last year, BIC hosted in Paris an unprecedented exhibition with 250 works by internationally recognized and upcoming artists, which captured the art community and took its audience on an immersive display.  

BIC is a world leader in stationery, lighters and shavers. For more than 70 years, BIC has honored the tradition of providing high-quality, affordable products to consumers everywhere. Through this unwavering dedication BIC has become one of the most recognized brands and is a trademark registered worldwide for identifying BIC products which are sold in more than 160 countries around the world.