De Niro establishes artist’s prize to honour father

NEW YORK - Actor Robert De Niro has established a $25,000 artists’ prize in honour of his father, who died in 1993 from cancer.

De Niro announced the annual award at an event Wednesday night at his father’s studio.

“This is my calling, if you will, to make sure my father’s legacy is there forever,” he said. “When my father passed away, I wanted to preserve this for my kids, to know what their grandfather did,” De Niro said.

According to a statement, the prize, to be called the Robert De Niro Sr prize, will recognise “an American artist whose work over a considerable period of time has made a significant contribution to the field of painting.”