FRANCISCO MASO, PICTURED
The Orlando Museum of Art (Website) has named Francisco Masó (Instagram | Website) as the recipient of the 2026 Florida Prize in Contemporary Art, the museum’s annual $20,000 award recognizing artists living and working in Florida.
Masó, a Cuban-born, Afro-Latinx conceptual artist based in Miami, was selected for The Coronation of Gladiolus, an immersive installation that transforms the gallery into a theatrical environment where celebration and spectacle give way to a deeper meditation on surveillance, state violence, and coded systems of oppression. Born in Havana in 1988, Masó works across photography, painting, performance, and installation, drawing on his personal experiences in Cuba, Japan, and the United States.
The 12th annual Florida Prize exhibition features 12 artists including Maria Theresa Barbist, Rose Marie Cromwell, Jason Hackenwerth, Katie Hargrave & Meredith Laura Lynn, Jessy Nite, Charo Oquet, Ema Ri, Mette Tommerup, and We Are Nice’n Easy. The show is on view through August 23.
This year’s winner was selected by juror Jade Powers, the Hugh Kaul Curator of Contemporary Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art.
Visitors can vote for their favorite artist all summer for the People’s Choice Award, a $5,000 prize to be announced at the closing ceremony on August 20.
More information at omart.org.
