The Turner Prize shortlist has been announced and
we'll be joined live by Christoph Grunenberg, the director of Tate Liverpool, which will host the Prize this year. He also chaired the jury which came up with shortlist.
Among them, someone who featured on PM in January, Mark Wallinger..."for his solo exhibition State Britain at Tate Britain. Mark Wallinger's powerful installation demonstrates art's unique ability to engage with contemporary political issues. The direct representation of Brian Haw's banners and paraphernalia creates a force and conviction unmatched by the representation of the Parliament Square protest in the media. The work evokes a heightened sense of reality that communicates an unpalatable political truth."
Mark Wallinger State Britain, 2007 Installation view at Tate Britain © Mark Wallinger Photocredit: Sam Drake, Tate Photography
Then there's Mike Nelson: "For his solo exhibitions AMNESIAN SHRINE or Double coop displacement, Matt's Gallery, London and Mirror Infill (2006), Frieze Projects, Frieze Art Fair, London in which his immersive installations transport the viewer to imaginary, yet plausible worlds. For the Frieze Art Fair he created an installation of a photographic studio that brought the site of creativity to the heart of the commercial environment in which it was embedded."
Mike Nelson Mirror Infill, 2006 Commissioned and produced by Frieze Projects © Mike Nelson Courtesy the artist and Matt's Gallery, London.
Howsabout Nathan Coley "For his solo exhibition at Mount Stuart, Isle of Bute, the public installation Camouflage Church, Santiago de Compostela, Spain and his contribution to the group exhibition Breaking Step - Displacement, Compassion and Humour in Recent British Art at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade, Serbia. Through a variety of media, Nathan Coley's work makes manifest the belief systems embedded in society and its architectures."
Nathan Coley There Will Be No Miracles Here, 2006 © Nathan Coley Courtesy doggerfisher and Haunch of Venison.
And then there's Zarina Bhimji "for her solo exhibitions at Haunch of Venison, London and Zurich, with work engaging with universal human emotions such as grief, pleasure, love and betrayal using non-narrative photography and film-making. Through powerful, atmospheric and poignant imagery, Bhimji's recent work demonstrates a new approach to her long-standing preoccupations and research. "
Zarina Bhimji Your Sadness is Drunk, 2001-2006 © Zarina Bhimji. DACS, London 2007 Courtesy Haunch of Venison.
RSS feed
Email us
Listen to PM
My vote goes to Nathan Coley, not only for his fishy name, but for the witty sparseness of his exhibit. It works at all kinds of levels, imho.
I've had to write publicity for conceptual art before. Maybe I was younger and more broadminded then. This just looks like a load of old twaddle to me!
Fifi
Pretentious tosh. Why, when I hear that the nominations for the Turner/Orange/MAN Booker/Whitbread/etc. are out, does my heart sink? And why do you accord these talentless fools airtime every single year? Unless you're trying to gently subvert them by exposing the inadequacy of their 'Art' and their 'Talent' for the public to laugh at, of course.
Where is the modern Rembrandt? Or El Greco? Or Michaelangelo? I don't mean in the choice of subject matter, necessarily, but their use of light and shade, their harmony of colour, their depiction of scene and context?
The first piccie with the prominent 'Peace, ..' banner makes me think that the artist is plagiarising our own Ed Iglehart. Ed I, sue him for everything he's got.
The second makes me think that having adopted digital photography the artist is making a virtue out of a necessity. He's got to ditch the darkroom to make way for the computer gear, so tell everyone that it's an 'installation' and hey presto, a room full of outdated junk with no cash value is instant art. Better yet, he soesn't have to pay for it to be taken away, someone will do it for free.
Thirdly; stick a few lights on some stolen scaffolding, make it spell out a semi-cryptic but nonsensical message and call it art. Watch the money roll in.
Lastly; what's the point of this. Not sure if it's a photograph, or a painting. Not sure what the hell it's meant to represent. Looks like any scruffy, down-at-heel building in any town on five continents. All background and no subject. Title is meaningless and bears no resemblance to the subject. No context. No interest. No point. Cash in.
I recall Rowan Atkinson in a 'Not the 9 o'clock news' skit about modern art, where he summed it all up as "One word, one prop, one woofter, one load of crap". Not so sure about the sexual slander, but in other respects nothing has changed then.
What on earth is an 'Installation' anyway. Can Nigel Wrench or somebody lease explain the origin of the term as applied to art?
I'm tempted to think it's related to the idea that you would summon a plumber to install a new lavatory (that's a toilet for all you middle-class people out there). Once installed you would have somewhere to stick all this stuff.
On the good side we do get to hear from Nigel again ( I imagine ?). That'll be good, seems ages since he was last on the programme.
Non-controversial as ever.
Si.
Definitely with Big Sis on that; wouldn't it be great to have a public vote?
SiW - you are sounding v disgruntled today. Theres a drink with your name on at the NC bar.
Simon, why not try this link?
I do like 'doggerfisher', though. Hope it doesn't suffer from German Blight.
Can I just congratulate you on such 'joined-up radio' It can't have been easy to find an item which had the same impact on one's sight as the spilt milk in the Glass Box did in olfactory terms.
Witchi;
First day of the working week. Rise at 04:30 followed by a four-hour drive to Norwich, eight-hour day, check into guesthouse, collapse on bed and snooze.
Not grumpy, well no more than usual. Just knackered.
Amaretto with Malibu, lots of ice? That'll do.
BigSis;
You've unknowingly scored a direct hit on a pet hate with Pollock. My kids can paint better than that. Hell, next-doors cat can paint better than that. It looks like the aftermath of a lousy internal decorator and what he did to your new carpets. If someone did that to your floor you'd sue them for criminal damage.
And we're supposed to believe all the twaddle about how this kind of thing "evokes a heightened sense of reality" or "immersive installations transport the viewer to imaginary, yet plausible worlds", or "makes manifest the belief systems embedded in society" or "engaging with universal human emotions such as grief, pleasure, love and betrayal".
It's just b*ll*cks, isn't it? I didn't feel any of the above. More like a heightened sense of the absurd that we are all supposed to swallow this and nod our heads sagely, pretending that we understand what is meant by this jargonistic psychobabble, rather than take the risk of appearing fools by showing our incomprehension. It's like a modern art version of the Emperors New Clothes.
When artists come out with this kind of stuff I'd love to hear Nigel, Eddie or whoever take them on directly for obfuscating the fact that they are talking rubbish and producing rubbish, rather than just giving in to it all.
Si.
Simon: So glad you enjoyed the link ;o)
But - did you have a go?
SiW - ouch, doesn't sound fun!! And I never said grumpy :) Its there and waiting for you (and in case RJD is around I meant the drink!)
Thge judges clearly didn't see Tony Bennett's artwork or there'd have been another nominee ....
Go on, Simon, play with Pollock! It's good fun!
Typical.
I did just wonder what this long term research that Bhimji has been involved with is. Feeding habits of urban pigeons perhaps?
I'm going to come across as a moaning old g!t here, but none of the above strike me as Art. The top one isn't even original, in the strict sense of the word. The artist has simply copied what has been done by someone else (in this case Brian Haw), and is passing it of as their own work. Doesn't this count as plagarism?
I was once booked to play at a function at Tate Liverpool. Achingly trendy. The nearest piece of art to where I was sitting was a frame with a piece of brownish canvas stretched tautly across it. And just one knife-slash through the canvas. Like I said, achingly trendy.
Rather then thinking "Come on, you're having a laugh, you don't call that art" I'm afraid my first thought was "D*mn, why couldn't I have thought of that?" in a horribly mercenary way.
Si W (3) & (9)...
....totally agree with everything you say. i may be a philestine when it comes to art (i may be one of the few that thinks Rolf H's portrait of HMQ is a brave attempt of her true likeness) but why is there nothing that was actually created from scratch ie there is no sculpture. Come on Bradley, Bracewell etc your having a laugh, you need to get out more....god knows what the good people of Liverpool think of this contemporary art...perhaps PM could interview a few?
DIY (17) I'm sure the 'good people of Liverpool' will tell it exactly as it is! I can't really claim to be one but I have lived here for 12 years and I would say that the bits above fall into the definition of art as 'What you can get away with'!
Liverpool has, and has had, quite a lot of art in the streets, including 'Lamb Banana' (you either love it or hate it) the 'Mersey Wave' near the airport and of course the Gormley men waiting on Crosby beach. We've also had bits of Yoko Ono on big banners in the city centre and the Victoria Monument wrapped up and made into a luxury hotel room which you could hire out for the night!
I think I need to retract my Nathan Coley vote - like the piece above but having seen some of his other work....like I say, retraction!