| Patrick Heiniger inaugurates a new philanthropic program |
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At a reception held today at The Frick Collection in the presence of some of the world's most esteemed artists, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Rolex S.A., Patrick Heiniger, inaugurated a new and unparalleled philanthropic program in the arts: the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative.
Joining Mr. Heiniger for the event were the five master artists who will distinguish the initiative by serving as Mentors during the program's first cycle. They are conductor Sir Colin Davis, choreographer William Forsythe, novelist Toni Morrison, architect Álvaro Siza and theater artist Robert Wilson.
Each Mentor has selected a Protégé from among candidates put forward by expert, international nominating panels, charged with searching out brilliant younger artists whose opportunities have not yet matched their great talent. Over the next year, each Protégé will enjoy extended contact with the Mentor, gaining personal experience of artistry at the highest level. In November 2003, to mark the conclusion of the year, Rolex will honor the Protégés and their Mentors at a celebratory event in New York. Accompanying the Mentors at the Frick Collection event were their chosen Protégés, who hail from five continents. They are architect Sahel Al-Hiyari, 38, from Amman, Jordan; conductor Josep Caballé-Domenech, 29, from Barcelona, Spain; novelist Julia Leigh, 32, from Sydney, Australia; theater artist Federico León, 27, from Buenos Aires, Argentina; and dancer-choreographer Sang Jijia, 29, from Hong Kong, China.
According to Mr. Heiniger, the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative will now proceed on a two-year cycle, with Mentors and Protégés being brought together for each cycle in the fields of dance, literature, music, theater arts and visual arts.
'We believe this program fills a void in arts philanthropy, in that it provides unprecedented corporate funding of individual emerging artists,' Mr. Heiniger stated. 'No other company, to our knowledge, supports individual artists in such a systematic way, internationally and across such a broad spectrum of the arts. We do so because Rolex wants to ensure that the world's artistic heritage is passed on personally, in the irreplaceable, time-honored tradition of master and protégé.'
An exceptional Advisory Board has helped to formulate the program and is guiding its progress. Many of these advisors were also present at the reception at The Frick Collection. Currently serving on the board are author Peter Carey; visual artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude; attorney and arts philanthropist Alain Coblence; author Ariel Dorfman; architect Frank Gehry; editor and publisher Paul Gottlieb; opera and theater director Sir Peter Hall; cultural producer Harvey Lichtenstein; prima ballerina Yoko Morishita; soprano Jessye Norman; broadcaster, writer and fundraiser Valerie Solti; and author Wole Soyinka.
Under the direction of the Advisory Board, five expert nominating panels have worked in anonymity to identify greatly accomplished younger artists who might become Protégés. Neither the nominating panels nor the Rolex staff accept applications. During the first cycle of the program, the nominating
panels reviewed the work of 96 younger artists from 39 countries in order to select Protégé candidates for the Mentors' consideration.
During the year of mentoring, which began officially with the reception, Rolex will provide a stipend of $25,000 to each of the Protégés. After the year of mentoring, each Protégé is expected to organize a showcase event in his or her home country, with a portion of the costs to be paid by Rolex. To increase the benefit of the program for other artists and audiences around the world, Rolex will document the year of mentoring in a publication and a documentary film.
According to Mr. Heiniger, the program complements the Rolex Awards for Enterprise, established in 1976 to support individuals who are advancing human knowledge and well-being in innovative ways. Laureates of the Awards for Enterprise are chosen for their outstanding personal achievements in the fields of science and medicine; technology and innovation; exploration and discovery; the environment; and cultural heritage.
'Rolex has been a company at the vanguard of watchmaking, and we have encouraged talent and tenacity in all of our initiatives. The Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative continues that tradition,' Mr. Heiniger stated. 'The Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, like the Awards for Enterprise, is a way of continuing our commitment to individual excellence. By searching out extraordinary younger artists and giving them personal access to great masters, Rolex hopes to provide them with the most precious gift of all: time to learn, time to grow and time to create.'
Rolex of Geneva is one of the world's foremost watchmakers, with an unrivalled reputation for quality craftsmanship. Since its inception in 1905, the privately owned company has introduced a series of revolutionary innovations, starting with the first truly waterproof watch, the Oyster, in 1926 and the first self-winding watch in 1931. To ensure the precision of the more than 170 Oyster models, each Rolex chronometer undergoes a year-long production process supported by rigorous quality-control procedures. Some 4,000 watchmakers at Rolex headquarters in Geneva and at its 23 international subsidiaries comprise an unparalleled after-sales service network, ensuring continued technical excellence. President and Chief Executive Officer Mr. Patrick Heiniger, the company's third CEO since its creation a century ago, guides Rolex's nearly 6,000 employees worldwide.
