AWARDS

The first five winners of a new Japanese-sponsored arts prize called the Praemium Imperiale will be announced today in New York, recognizing lifetime achievement in architecture, music, painting, sculpture and theater/film. The recipients, who will receive $100,000 each, are recommended by an International Committee of Advisers composed of three former European prime ministers (Jacques Chirac of France, Edward Heath of Britain and Amintore Fanfani of Italy), one former West German chancellor (Helmut Schmidt) and David Rockefeller, former chairman and chief executive officer of Chase Manhattan Bank. Praemium Imperiale organizers expect their creation to become the equivalent of the Nobel Prize, which does not recognize artistic fields other than literature.