The first ever winner of The Future Generation Art Prize has been announced. The prize, set up by Ukrainian billionaire and all round art loving good guy Victor Pinchuck, aims to recognize new and independent artists in a way that other art prizes like The Turner prize don’t. Pinchuk’s prize gives anyone the chance to apply by submitting their work over the internet, making it a more democratic process than many other art prizes, often seen as a closed shop to unknowns. When the prize was announced a year ago it attracted more than 6,000 applicants from 125 countries on six continents.

The winning artist was Cinthia Marcelle, a 36 year old Brazilian, whose art comes in the form of films, photographs and installations. The age of the winner is actually capped at 35, but Marcelle made it by being 35 when she applied. She was chosen as the winner by a panel of arts professionals and artists including Robert Storr, dean of the Yale University School of Art and director of the 2007 Venice Biennale; Daniel Birnbaum, director of the Städelschule Art Academy in Frankfurt and director of the 2009 Venice Biennale; and Chinese artist Ai Weiwei.

Mr Pinchuk had this to say on the inaugural winner of his new art prize: “When I first saw her work I thought it is so smart and so beautiful I would like to acquire it and as I’m establishing a tradition of buying the winner’s work I am glad the jury agreed. For me it is the most beautiful and the strongest.”

Praise indeed.

A deserving $100,000 dollars on its way to Ms Marcelle then, on condition that $40,000 of the $100,000 goes into the production of new art. A nice touch for an art prize that is doing more than any other to bring independent, underground art to the masses.