Orlando Museum of Art announces winner of the $20,000 Florida Prize in Contemporary Art for 2025

Nathalie Alfonso has been honored for her groundbreaking artistic vision and impact on Florida’s contemporary art landscape.

The Orlando Museum of Art (OMA) has announced Nathalie Alfonso as the recipient of the 2025 Florida Prize in Contemporary Art, an esteemed $20,000 award that highlights the innovative spirit and creative excellence of artists living and working in Florida. This year’s prize winner was selected by juror Rod Bigelow, Executive Director of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

The Florida Prize in Contemporary Art exhibition, presented by VyStar Credit Union and curated by OMA Chief Curator Coralie Claeysen-Gleyzon, showcases 10 artists whose works span a wide range of mediums, capturing the vibrant and diverse cultural fabric of Florida. Alfonso was recognized with the $20,000 prize for her visionary approach and meaningful contributions to the field of contemporary art. 

“It is a privilege to recognize Nathalie Alfonso with the Florida Prize in Contemporary Art,” said OMA CEO Cathryn Mattson. “Her work captivates the eye and challenges the mind, offering bold perspectives that invite deeper reflection. At the Orlando Museum of Art, we remain committed to celebrating artists who shape Florida’s rich cultural landscape – and Nathalie exemplifies the creativity and vision thriving in our state.”

Alfonso, originally from Bogota, Colombia, lives and works in South Florida. Her work is rooted in the intensive, laborious practice of gestural drawing. Alfonso transforms spaces into expressive site-specific and ephemeral works, created through an infinite amount of repeated and controlled bodily movements. After emigrating to the U.S. at 18, Alfsonso cleaned houses, which became a form of embodied research for her. Through its motions—brushing, scrubbing, polishing, waxing, rinsing, on repeat—she became aware of her body, its habits, and its expressive capacity. Her artwork connects movement and physical labor as she has become deeply aware of the often-overlooked nature of labor and the tireless work put in behind the scenes.

Alfonso holds a master’s in fine arts from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and a bachelor’s in fine arts from Florida International University in Miami, Florida. Previous exhibitions with her work include The Frank Gallery and NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale. 

Her most ambitious project to date, the piece Alfonso created for the Florida Prize, LineScape—Onset, took three weeks to complete. While it may appear as an abstract, painted in subdued hues with faint lines evocative of a landscape, and starker grid lines echoing the architecture of the gallery, the piece was drawn using pastels across the 87-by-17-foot high gallery wall.

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“I really want to thank my family, extended family and friends for all the years of hard work that they have had to put up with,” Alfonso said. “I want to acknowledge the hard work of all ten artists who are here, because I know each of them has spent an incredible amount of time alone in their studios, wondering ‘why is it that we do this?’ Things like this make it so worth it. I’m very happy to be here and celebrate this prize.”

Celebrating its 11th year, the Florida Prize in Contemporary Art exhibition is now on view at OMA through August 21, featuring works by Nathalie Alfonso, Eddie Arroyo, Leo Castañeda, Kelly Joy Ladd, Amanda Linares, Kandy G. Lopez, Jiha Moon, Troy Simmons, Cornelius Tulloch and Lisu Vega. These artists explore timely themes such as ancestry, memory and urban transformation in thought-provoking work.

“I am so thrilled to see this organization pull the community together to talk about art and to talk about the legacies of family,” Bigelow said. “The ten artists that are in this show have elevated the experience beyond my expectations. I come from an organization that specializes in American art, and I think it’s incredibly thrilling to see that art is well alive in the state of Florida.”

Visitors are encouraged to experience the exhibition and vote for their favorite artist all summer long. The “People’s Choice” award, sponsored by AdventHealth, includes a $5,000 prize and will be announced at the exhibition’s closing ceremony on August 21.

For more information on the Florida Prize in Contemporary Art, the artists, OMA’s sponsors, and the opening preview party, please visit www.omart.org. Funds from the event will support the Florida Prize exhibition and education programs.   

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