The Alexej von Jawlensky Prize is awarded approximately every five years in memory of the great Russian painter's life's work.

The award includes a cash prize, an exhibition at the Wiesbaden Museum and the purchase of a work. The city, the ➞ Spielbank Wiesbaden and the Nassauische Sparkasse are involved in endowing the prize.

The American painter Agnes Martin received the Alexej von Jawlensky Prize for the first time in 1991. In 1996, the international jury selected the American painter Robert Mangold as the second prize winner; the award ceremony and exhibition took place in 1998. The third prize winner in 2003 was the American painter Brice Marden. The exhibition of the artist's work associated with the prize was not realized until 2008. In 2007, the Alexej von Jawlensky Prize was awarded for the fourth time, this time to the multiple documenta participant Rebecca Horn. In 2010, the American artist Ellsworth Kelly received the Alexej von Jawlensky Prize for his life's work. The award was presented to him at the opening of the award-winning exhibition at the Museum Wiesbaden in 2012. In 2014, the jury awarded this honor to the American sculptor Richard Serra.