MUMBAI: Robert De Niro has instituted a new 25,000 annual award, the Robert De Niro Sr. Prize that will honour American artists for achievement in painting.

The prize will be administered by the Tribeca Film Institute said the Tribeca Film Institute co-chairman De Niro. He was joined by Megan Fox Kelly and Jeffrey Hoffeld, advisors to the estate.

A committee of distinguished individuals in the art world will be appointed annually to nominate and select three finalists and the prize recipient.

The estate will also host a group exhibition for the finalists at which the winner will be announced.

De Niro will fund the prize, which is among the first to celebrate and shine a light on midcareer artists. The first prize will be awarded in 2011.