Trade News
June 18, 2026
Kaiseraugst (Switzerland), Maastricht (Netherlands), June 18, 2026
dsm-firmenich, innovators in nutrition, health, and beauty, today announced the winner of The Art of Progress Prize, a global art award celebrating a new generation of visionary artists.
An award ceremony and exhibition featuring the works of five finalists was held today at dsm-firmenich’s Kaiseraugst headquarters. Invasive Apparatus by Xingyu Huang was selected as the winner of the Prize. The winner will receive a €15,000 award and a year-long mentorship to support the next stage of their artistic development.
The Art of Progress Prize is based on the idea that art can shift perspectives, challenge assumptions and spark fresh ideas. It recognizes early-career artists whose work brings together innovation, sensory experience, and sustainability to inspire progress. Open to artists aged 35 and under, the Prize invited submissions from around the world whose multisensory and environmentally conscious practices push creative boundaries. Through this initiative, the Prize seeks to encourage new perspectives on how we define progress and how creativity can help bring progress to life.
The Art of Progress Prize received 366 submissions from artists around the world, and 830 employees also cast their votes to help select the winner.
Following a rigorous selection process involving an international Selection Committee and Jury, Invasive Apparatus was recognized for its exploration of sustainability, innovation, and sensory experience. Through a living water filtration system that combines biological organisms with repurposed industrial materials, the installation transforms complex environmental processes into something audiences can experience through sound, humidity, scent, and movement. By making invisible ecological systems perceptible, the work invites reflection on the relationship between human infrastructure, natural ecosystems, and the future of sustainable coexistence. The Jury was particularly struck by the way the project rethinks what progress can mean today. Rather than presenting progress as purely technological, Invasive Apparatus explores ideas of adaptation, reuse, and coexistence. Materials and organisms often perceived as waste, invasive, or unwanted are transformed into a living system, offering an alternative vision of how human and natural systems might coexist.
Based between Chicago and Los Angeles, Xingyu Huang is an interdisciplinary artist working across sculpture, architecture, and digital media. Her practice explores the relationships between human and non-human systems, creating sensory environments that bring complex ecological processes into public view. Her work strongly reflects the spirit of the Art of Progress Prize by showing how art can open new conversations around sustainability, material reuse, and our connection to the environment.
To learn more about the Prize and the winning piece, click here.
About dsm-firmenich
As innovators in nutrition, health, and beauty, dsm-firmenich reinvents, manufactures, and combines vital nutrients, flavors, and fragrances for the world’s growing population to thrive. With our comprehensive range of solutions, with natural and renewable ingredients and renowned science and technology capabilities, we work to create what is essential for life, desirable for consumers, and more sustainable for people and the planet. dsm-firmenich is a Swiss company, listed on the Euronext Amsterdam and SIX Swiss Exchange, with operations in almost 60 countries and revenues of more than €9 billion for its Continuing Operations following the divestment of Animal Nutrition & Health. With a diverse, worldwide team of nearly 21,000 employees, we bring progress to life every day, everywhere, for billions of people. www.dsm-firmenich.com
For more information, please contact:
dsm-firmenich media enquiries:
Email: media@dsm-firmenich.com
Disclaimer
This press release does not constitute or form part of, an offer or any solicitation of an offer for securities in any jurisdiction. This press release may contain forward-looking statements with respect to dsm-firmenich’s future. Such statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections of dsm-firmenich and information currently available to the company. dsm-firmenich cautions readers that such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict and therefore it should be understood that many factors can cause actual performance and position to differ materially from these statements. dsm-firmenich has no obligation to update the statements contained in this press release, unless required by law. This communication contains information that qualifies as inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The English language version of this press release prevails over other language versions.