# Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative

The Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative is a philanthropic programme by Swiss watchmaker Rolex that pairs gifted young artists with internationally recognized masters in architecture, dance, film, literature, music, theatre and visual arts for a year of creative collaboration in a one-to-one mentoring relationship. The initiative was launched in 2002 and runs every two years.
The mentoring programme grew out of a desire by Rolex to support artists in the same way that the Rolex Awards for Enterprise were supporting scientists, conservationists and explorers. Mentor and protégé are expected to work together for six weeks over a two-year period. Each protégé receives a grant of about $41,000 in addition to funds for travel and expenses.

## Participants

Not every discipline is covered in each cycle.

### Architecture

(The architecture discipline was launched in 2012)
| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2012–2013 | Kazuyo Sejima (Japan) | Zhao Yang (China) |
| 2014–2015 | Peter Zumthor (Switzerland) | Gloria Cabral (Paraguay) |
| 2016–2017 | David Chipperfield (UK) | Simon Kretz (Switzerland) |
| 2018–2019 | David Adjaye (Ghana / United Kingdom) | Miriam Kamara (Niger) |
| 2023–2024 | Anne Lacaton (France) | Arine Aprahamian (Lebanon / Armenia) |

### Dance

| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2002–2003 | William Forsythe (United States) | Sang Jijia (China) |
| 2004–2005 | Saburo Teshigawara (Japan) | Junaid Jemal Sendi (Ethiopia) |
| 2006–2007 | Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker (Belgium) | Anani Dodji Sanouvi (Togo) |
| 2008–2009 | Jiří Kylián (Czech Republic) | Jason Akira Somma (United States) |
| 2010–2011 | Trisha Brown (United States) | Lee Serle (Australia) |
| 2012–2013 | Lin Hwai-Min (Taiwan) | Eduardo Fukushima (Brazil) |
| 2014–2015 | Alexei Ratmansky (Russia/United States) | Myles Thatcher (United States) |
| 2016–2017 | Ohad Naharin (Israel) | Londiwe Khoza (South Africa) |
| 2018–2019 | Crystal Pite (Canada) | Khoudia Touré (Senegal) |

### Film

(The film discipline was launched in 2004)
| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2004–2005 | Mira Nair (India) | Aditya Assarat (Thailand) |
| 2006–2007 | Stephen Frears (United Kingdom) | Josué Méndez (Peru) |
| 2008–2009 | Martin Scorsese (United States) | Celina Murga (Argentina) |
| 2010–2011 | Zhang Yimou (China) | Annemarie Jacir (Palestine/Jordan) |
| 2012–2013 | Walter Murch (United States) | Sara Fgaier (Italy) |
| 2014–2015 | Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Mexico) | Tom Shoval (Israel) |
| 2016–2017 | Alfonso Cuarón (Mexico) | Chaitanya Tamhane (India) |
| 2020–2022 | Spike Lee (United States) | Kile Bell (United States) |
| 2023–2024 | Jia Zhangke (China) | Rafael Manuel (Philippines) |
| 2025-2026 | Boong Joon-ho (South Korea) | Rahul M (India) |

### Literature

| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2002–2003 | Toni Morrison (United States) | Julia Leigh (Australia) |
| 2004–2005 | Mario Vargas Llosa (Peru) | Antonio García Ángel (Colombia) |
| 2006–2007 | Tahar Ben Jelloun (Morocco) | Edem Awumey (Togo) |
| 2008–2009 | Wole Soyinka (Nigeria) | Tara June Winch (Australia) |
| 2010–2011 | Hans Magnus Enzensberger (Germany) | Tracy K. Smith (United States) |
| 2012–2013 | Margaret Atwood (Canada) | Naomi Alderman (United Kingdom) |
| 2014–2015 | Michael Ondaatje (Canada) | Miroslav Penkov (Bulgaria) |
| 2016–2017 | Mia Couto (Mozambique) | Julián Fuks (Brazil / Argentina) |
| 2018–2019 | Colm Tóibín (Ireland) | Colin Barrett (Ireland / Canada) |
| 2023–2024 | Bernardine Evaristo (Great Britain) | Ayesha Harruna Attah (Ghana / Senegal) |

### Music

| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2002–2003 | Colin Davis (United Kingdom) | Josep Caballé-Domenech (Spain) |
| 2004–2005 | Jessye Norman (United States) | Susan Platts (Canada) |
| 2006–2007 | Pinchas Zukerman (Israel) | David Aaron Carpenter (United States) |
| 2008–2009 | Youssou N’Dour (Senegal) | Aurelio Martínez (Honduras) |
| 2010–2011 | Brian Eno (United Kingdom) | Ben Frost (Australia) |
| 2012–2013 | Gilberto Gil (Brazil) | Dina El Wedidi (Egypt) |
| 2014–2015 | Kaija Saariaho (Finland) | Vasco Mendonça (Portugal) |
| 2016–2017 | Philip Glass (United States) | Pauchi Sasaki (Peru) |
| 2018–2019 | Zakir Hussain (India) | Marcus Gilmore (United States) |
| 2023–2024 | Dianne Reeves (United States) | Song Yi Jeon (South Korea) |

### Theatre

| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2002–2003 | Robert Wilson (United States) | Federico León (Argentina) |
| 2004–2005 | Peter Hall (United Kingdom) | Lara Foot (South Africa) |
| 2006–2007 | Julie Taymor (United States) | Selina Cartmell (United Kingdom) |
| 2008–2009 | Kate Valk (United States) | Nahuel Pérez Biscayart (Argentina) |
| 2010–2011 | Peter Sellars (United States) | Maya Zbib (Lebanon) |
| 2012–2013 | The late Patrice Chéreau (France) | Michał Borczuch [de; pl] (Poland) |
| 2014–2015 | Jennifer Tipton (United States) | Sebastián Solórzano Rodríguez (Mexico) |
| 2016–2017 | Robert Lepage (Canada) | Matías Umpierrez (Argentina / Spain) |
| 2020–2022 | Phyllida Lloyd (Great Britain) | Whitney White (United States) |

### Visual arts

| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2002–2003 | Álvaro Siza (Portugal) | Sahel Al Hiyari (Jordan) |
| 2004–2005 | David Hockney (United Kingdom) | Matthias Weischer (Germany) |
| 2006–2007 | John Baldessari (United States) | Alejandro Cesarco (Uruguay) |
| 2008–2009 | Rebecca Horn (Germany) | Masanori Handa (Japan) |
| 2010–2011 | Anish Kapoor (United Kingdom) | Nicholas Hlobo (South Africa) |
| 2012–2013 | William Kentridge (South Africa) | Mateo López (Colombia) |
| 2014–2015 | Olafur Eliasson (Denmark/Iceland) | Sammy Baloji (Democratic Republic of the Congo) |
| 2016–2017 | Joan Jonas (United States) | Thao-Nguyen Phan (Vietnam) |
| 2020–2022 | Carrie Mae Weems (United States) | Camila Rodríguez Triana (Columbia) |
| 2023–2024 | El Anatsui (Ghana) | Bronwyn Katz (South Africa) |

### Open category

| | Mentor | Protégé |
| 2020–2022 | Lin-Manuel Miranda (United States) | Agustina San Martín (Argentina) |