88-472: The Turner Prize , named after the English painter J. M. W. Turner , is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist. Between 1991 and 2016, only artists under the age of 50 were eligible (this restriction was removed for the 2017 award). The prize is awarded at Tate Britain every other year, with various venues outside of London being used in alternate years. Since its beginnings in 1984 it has become
176-759: A dedicated programme as in recent years. The total prize money was £40,000: £25,000 awarded to the winner and £5,000 to each of the other 3 nominees. The prize was sponsored by the makers of Gordon's Gin . Under the Freedom of Information Act , The Sunday Telegraph obtained emails between the Tate and judge Lynn Barber , which revealed that the judges had been sent a list of shows by artists too late to be able to see them and instead were being supplied with catalogues and photographs of work. More controversy ensued when Barber wrote in The Observer about her troubles as
264-584: A dedicated room. Tate Britain is the home of the annual and usually controversial Turner Prize exhibition, featuring four artists selected by a jury chaired by the director of Tate Britain. This is spread out over the year with the four nominees announced in May, the show of their work opened in October and the prize itself given in December. Each stage of the prize generates media coverage, and there have also been
352-540: A difficulty at the moment but you don't abandon your friends because they have what we consider to be a temporary difficulty." The art critic Brian Sewell coined the critical phrase 'the Serota tendency' to refer to the popular BritArt movement of the 1990s that was favoured by Serota's Tate and collectors such as Charles Saatchi. Since its formation in 1999, the Stuckist art group has campaigned against Serota, who
440-420: A dildo. It was in fact made of bronze, painted to look like plastic. Attention was also given to Grayson Perry who exhibited pots decorated with sexual imagery, and was the prize winner. He wore a flouncy skirt to collect the prize, announced by Sir Peter Blake , who said, after being introduced by Sir Nicholas Serota, "Thank you very much Nick. I'm quite surprised to be here tonight, because two days ago I had
528-472: A film and I will watch the tape when I get home." One of Ofili's works, No Woman No Cry is based on the murder of Stephen Lawrence , killed in a race attack. The jury included musician Neil Tennant , author Marina Warner , curator Fumio Nanjo and British Council officer Ann Gallagher, chaired by Nicholas Serota. Other nominees included installation artist Tacita Dean , sculptor Cathy de Monchaux and video artist Sam Taylor-Wood . In addition to being
616-425: A first-floor gallery, restaurant, lecture theatre and other rooms. Although receiving wide approbation, the scheme was in deficit by £250,000. In 1987, Serota raised £1.4 million in an auction of work, which he had asked artists to donate, paying off the debt, and creating an endowment fund to allow future exhibitions of more unconventional work, unlikely to attract a commercial sponsor. The short-listed candidates for
704-591: A focus of academic study. Nicholas Serota Sir Nicholas Andrew Serota CH (born 27 April 1946) is a British art historian and curator . He has been chairman of Arts Council England since February 2017. Serota was director of the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford , then director of the Whitechapel Gallery , London, and then director of the Tate from 1988 to 2017. He was also chairman of
792-472: A judge, even asking, "Is it all a fix?", a comment subsequently displayed on a Stuckist demonstration placard, much to her chagrin. The judges were: The winner of the £25,000 Prize was Mark Wallinger . His display at the Turner Prize show was Sleeper , a film of him dressed in a bear costume wandering around an empty museum, but the prize was officially given for State Britain , which recreated all
880-494: A large display by Fiona Banner whose wall-size text piece, Arsewoman in Wonderland, described a pornographic film in detail. The Guardian asked, "It's art. But is it porn?" calling in "Britain's biggest porn star", Ben Dover , to comment. Culture Minister Kim Howells made a scathing criticism of the exhibits as "conceptual bullshit". Prince Charles wrote to him: "It's good to hear your refreshing common sense about
968-557: A live Channel 4 discussion programme, presented as part of the coverage of the award. The discussion was chaired by Tim Marlow and also included Roger Scruton , Waldemar Januszczak , Richard Cork , David Sylvester and Norman Rosenthal . Emin wrote about the incident in her 2005 book Strangeland , describing her shock at reading The Guardian writeup the following day. This was the only time in history with an all-female shortlist including sculptor Christine Borland , Angela Bulloch and sculptor Cornelia Parker . The talking point
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#17327658876901056-685: A major tourist fixture of London. As well as housing acclaimed new works by Louise Bourgeois and Anish Kapoor , the Gallery has also provided the base for successful exhibitions of Donald Judd , Picasso , Matisse and Edward Hopper . On 21 November 2000, Serota gave the Dimbleby Lecture in London starting by telling of a 1987 Civil Service enquiry which ranked the pay of the Tate Gallery director with that of larger museums such as
1144-639: A museum, taking in the view, an espresso or glass of wine, purchasing a book or an artist designed t-shirt. Many are delighted to praise the museum, but remain deeply suspicious of the contents. In 2016, Serota received a salary of between £165,000 and £169,999 from the Tate, making him one of the 328 most highly paid people in the UK public sector then, at the lower end of the senior officials 'high-earners' list and well below what similar executives in public health, transport or government administrative top roles were earning. In 1998, Serota conceived "Operation Cobalt" ,
1232-521: A number of demonstrations against the prize, notably since 2000 an annual picket by Stuckist artists. In recent years the exhibition and award ceremony have taken place at locations other than in Tate Britain: for example, in Liverpool (2007), Derry (2013), Glasgow (2015) and Hull (2017). Tate Britain has attempted to reach out to a different and younger audience with Late at Tate Britain on
1320-627: A phone call asking if I would be a judge for the Not the Turner Prize . And two years ago I was asked by the Stuckists to dress as a clown and come and be on the steps outside, so I am thrilled and slightly surprised to be here." Other nominees included Willie Doherty (his second nomination since 1994) and Anya Gallaccio . The media focused on a large computer simulation of a former hideout of Osama bin Laden by Ben Langlands and Nikki Bell , as well as
1408-483: A previous nomination in 1984. Other nominees included Art & Language (collaborative group composed of Michael Baldwin and Mel Ramsden), sculpture/printing artist Victor Burgin , painter Derek Jarman , painter Stephen McKenna and sculptor Bill Woodrow . Sculpture artist Richard Deacon was awarded the prize. Other nominees included graphic-style painter/printer Patrick Caulfield , Helen Chadwick , Richard Long , Declan McGonagle and Thérèse Oulton . The prize
1496-466: A protective brick wall built in front of it. In anticipation of the threat to London, more than 700 artworks were secretly transported to Muncaster Castle in Cumbria on 24 August 1939. In 1970, the building was given Grade II* listed status. In 2012, Tate Britain announced that it had raised the £45 million required to complete a major renovation, largely thanks to a £4.9 million grant from
1584-399: A raspberry" ( Eastern Daily Press ), and my favourite, "For 1,000 years art has been one of our great civilising forces. Today, pickled sheep and soiled bed threaten to make barbarians of us all" ( The Daily Mail ). Are these papers speaking the minds of their readers? I have no delusions. People may be attracted by the spectacle of new buildings, they may enjoy the social experience of visiting
1672-510: A tremendous sense of diplomacy. He is a passionate man, and indeed is quite unusual in this country in his commitment to modern painting and sculpture." In contrast, Peter Fuller made a scathing attack in Modern Painters magazine, saying that Serota would be incapable, by temperament and ability, of maintaining the Tate's historic collection. Major expansion of the Tate Gallery had been seen as inevitable for two decades. In 1993,
1760-804: A working relationship with Alexander "Sandy" Nairne , with whom he worked at various points in the following years. In 1976, Serota was appointed director of the Whitechapel Gallery in London 's East End . The Whitechapel was well regarded but had suffered from lack of resources. Serota assembled at the Whitechapel a staff including Jenni Lomax (later director of the Camden Arts Centre ), Mark Francis (later of Gagosian Gallery ) and Sheena Wagstaff (later chief curator of Tate Modern ), and organised exhibitions of Carl Andre , Eva Hesse and Gerhard Richter as well as early exhibitions of then emerging artists such as Antony Gormley . In 1976 he
1848-466: Is a controversial event, mainly for the exhibits, such as The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living – a shark in formaldehyde by Damien Hirst – and My Bed , a dishevelled bed by Tracey Emin . Controversy has also come from other directions, including Culture Minister Kim Howells criticising exhibits, a guest of honour ( Madonna ) swearing, prize judge Lynn Barber writing in
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#17327658876901936-508: Is accessible by steps. A side entrance at a lower level has a ramp for wheelchair access. The gallery provides a restaurant and a café, as well as a Friends room, open only to members of the Tate. This membership is open to the public on payment of an annual subscription. As well as administration offices the building complex houses the Prints and Drawings Rooms (in the Clore galleries), as well as
2024-407: Is announced at the beginning of December. The exhibition remains on view until January. The prize is officially not judged on the Tate show, however, but on the earlier exhibition for which the artist was nominated. The exhibition and prize rely on commercial sponsorship . By 1987, money for the prize was provided by Drexel Burnham Lambert ; its withdrawal after its demise led to the cancellation of
2112-468: Is awarded the inaugural Turner Prize for his installation of two oil-on-canvas paintings inspired by a trip to Greece. Morley's win sparked controversy because he had been living in New York for the previous 20 years. Other nominees included Richard Long , Richard Deacon and Gilbert & George , all of whom went on to win the Turner Prize themselves. The prize was awarded by Lord Gowrie , Minister for
2200-467: Is decorated with spots, based on paintings of similar appearance by Damien Hirst . The lighting artwork incorporated in the pier's structure is by Angela Bulloch . The main display spaces show the permanent collection of historic British art, as well as contemporary work. It has rooms dedicated to works by one artist, such as: Tracey Emin , John Latham , Douglas Gordon , Sam Taylor-Wood , Tacita Dean , and Marcus Gheeraerts II, though these works, like
2288-473: Is the national gallery of British art from 1500 to the present day. As such, it is the most comprehensive collection of its kind in the world (only the Yale Center for British Art can claim similar expansiveness, but with less depth). More recent artists include David Hockney , Peter Blake and Francis Bacon . Works in the permanent Tate collection, which may be on display at Tate Britain include: When
2376-470: Is the subject of the group's co-founder Charles Thomson's satirical painting Sir Nicholas Serota Makes an Acquisitions Decision (2000), one of the best known Stuckist works and a likely "signature piece" for the movement. Serota was dubbed the "least likely visitor" to The Stuckists Punk Victorian show at the Walker Art Gallery in 2004, which included a wall of work satirising him and
2464-549: Is valued over honesty I would also like to say "Right on, motherfuckers!". This was on live TV before the 9 pm watershed and an attempt to "bleep" it out was too late. Channel 4 were subsequently given an official rebuke by the Independent Television Commission. Other nominees included photographer Richard Billingham , video/installation artist (and now film director) Isaac Julien and installation artist Mike Nelson . The media focused on
2552-523: The Charles Saatchi -sponsored Sensation exhibition. Most of the artists nominated for the prize selection become known to the general public for the first time as a consequence. Some have talked of the difficulty of the sudden media exposure. Sale prices of the winners have generally increased. Chris Ofili , Anish Kapoor and Jeremy Deller later became trustees of the Tate. Some artists, including Sarah Lucas and Julian Opie , have declined
2640-476: The Heritage Lottery Fund and £1 million given by Tate Members. The museum stayed open throughout the three phases of renovation. Completed in 2013, the newly designed sections were conceived by the architects Caruso St John and included a total of nine new galleries, with reinforced flooring to accommodate heavy sculptures. A second part was unveiled later that year, the centrepiece being
2728-474: The K Foundation received media coverage for the award of the " Anti-Turner Prize ", £40,000 to be given to the "worst artist in Britain", voted from the real Turner Prize's short-list. Rachel Whiteread was awarded their prize. She refused to accept the money at first, but changed her mind when she heard the cash was to be burned instead, and gave £30,000 of it to artists in financial need and the other £10,000 to
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2816-507: The National Gallery , because the former "has to deal with the very difficult problem of modern art." He explained it thus: For in spite of much greater public interest in all aspects of visual culture, including design and architecture, the challenge posed by contemporary art has not evaporated. We have only to recall the headlines for last year's Turner Prize. "Eminence without merit" ( The Sunday Telegraph ). "Tate trendies blow
2904-621: The Pre-Raphaelite painter and President of the Royal Academy , John Everett Millais , died in 1896, the Prince of Wales (later to become King Edward VII ) chaired a memorial committee, which commissioned a statue of the artist. The sculpture, by Thomas Brock , was installed at the front of the gallery in the garden on the east side in 1905. On 23 November that year, The Pall Mall Gazette called it "a breezy statue, representing
2992-728: The Tate Gallery , is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in England, with Tate Modern , Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives . Founded by Sir Henry Tate , it houses a substantial collection of the art of the United Kingdom since Tudor times, and in particular has large holdings of the works of J. M. W. Turner , who bequeathed all his own collection to
3080-583: The Turner Prize jury until 2007. Born and raised in Hampstead , North London, the only son of Stanley Serota, a civil engineer , and Beatrice Katz Serota , a civil servant , later a life peer and Labour Minister for Health in Harold Wilson 's government and local government ombudsman . His younger sister, Judith Serota, who also works in the arts, is married to Francis Pugh. Serota
3168-457: The Arts at the time. Howard Hodgkin was awarded the Turner Prize for A Small Thing But My Own . Other nominees included Terry Atkinson , sculptor Tony Cragg , Ian Hamilton Finlay , Milena Kalinovska and painting/printing artist John Walker . The prize was awarded by celebrity presenter Sir Richard Attenborough . The controversial art duo Gilbert & George were awarded the prize after
3256-749: The Library and Archive in the Hyman Kreitman Reading Rooms. The restaurant features a mural by Rex Whistler , The Expedition in Pursuit of Rare Meats . Protests over the depiction of the enslavement of Black children and the stereotyping of Chinese figures in the mural has led to the closure of the restaurant. Tate Britain and Tate Modern are now connected by a river bus along the River Thames , which runs from Millbank Millennium Pier immediately outside Tate Britain. The boat
3344-513: The Stuckists". Controversy was caused by winner Martin Creed 's installation Work No. 227: The lights going on and off consisting of an empty room whose lighting periodically came on and went off. Artist Jacqueline Crofton threw eggs at the walls of the room containing Creed's work as a protest. At the prize ceremony, Madonna gave him the prize and said, "At a time when political correctness
3432-530: The Tate directorship , who included Norman Rosenthal and Julian Spalding , were asked to prepare a seven-year scheme for the Tate. Serota's submission, on two sides of A4 paper, was titled "Grasping the Nettle". It analysed the various areas of Tate work and proposed future strategies to deal with the imminent crisis caused by restricted government financial support, changing public sector management expectations and increasing art market prices. He saw many areas of
3520-560: The Tate had made no commitment to purchase the work (a requirement of the grant), whereas they had already paid a first instalment of £250,000 several months previously. He attributed this to "a failing in his head". The NACF allowed the Tate to keep the grant. In 2006, the Charity Commission ruled the Tate had broken charity law (but not criminal law ) over the purchase and similar trustee purchases, including ones made before Serota's directorship. The Daily Telegraph called
3608-475: The Tate's operations in need of overhaul, and concluded that the gallery was loved, but not respected enough. Tate chairman, Sir Richard Rogers considered this by far the best proposal submitted. News of Serota's appointment as Tate director in 1988 was received enthusiastically by Howard Hodgkin , who wrote in The Sunday Times , "Nick Serota has enormous energy and demonstrated at the Whitechapel
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3696-453: The Tate, including Thomson's painting. In fact, he did visit and met the artists, describing the work as "lively". In 2005, the Stuckists offered 160 paintings from the Walker show as a donation to the Tate. Serota wrote to the Stuckists, saying that the work was not of "sufficient quality in terms of accomplishment, innovation or originality of thought to warrant preservation in perpetuity in
3784-410: The Tate. In 2000 the statue was removed to the rear of the building. Starting in 1990, oil company BP began a sponsorship of Tate Britain, which was to become 'the longest and most consistent sponsorship of any permanent art collection in the UK' according to the Tate itself. Although BP renewed its support in 2011, offering a fresh commitment to last a further decade, the following year BP announced
3872-454: The UK's most publicised art award. The award represents all media. As of 2004, the monetary award was established at £40,000. There have been different sponsors, including Channel 4 television and Gordon's Gin . A prominent event in British culture , the prize has been awarded by various distinguished celebrities: in 2006 this was Yoko Ono , and in 2012 it was presented by Jude Law . It
3960-484: The announcement of the four nominees and during the build-up to the announcement of the winner, the Prize receives intense attention from the media. Much of this attention is critical and the question is often asked, "Is this art?" The shortlisted and winning artists are chosen by the prize's jury based upon a showing of their work that they have staged in the preceding year. Nominations for the prize are usually invited from
4048-572: The bed, stripped to their underwear, and had a pillow fight. Police detained the two, who called their performance Two Naked Men Jump into Tracey's Bed . Other nominees included Steven Pippin and collaborative sibling duo Jane and Louise Wilson . The prize was won by Wolfgang Tillmans . Other entries included a large painting by Glenn Brown based very closely on a science fiction illustration published some years previously. Michael Raedecker and Tomoko Takahashi were also nominated. The Stuckist art group staged their first demonstration against
4136-504: The creation of the National Lottery made it possible to anticipate the availability of major public funding for an enlarged Gallery. In 1995, Tate received £52 million towards the conversion of the former Bankside Power Station to create Tate Modern . The final cost was £135 million; Serota managed to secure the funds to make up the shortfall from a range of private sources. Tate Modern opened in May 2000 and quickly became
4224-643: The display of historical and contemporary British art . As a consequence, it was renamed Tate Britain in March 2000. The front part of the building was designed by Sidney R. J. Smith with a classical portico and dome behind, and the central sculpture gallery was designed by John Russell Pope . Tate Britain includes the Clore Gallery of 1987, designed by James Stirling , which houses work by J. M. W. Turner . The Clore Gallery has been regarded as an important example of Postmodern architecture , especially in
4312-442: The dreaded Turner prize. It has contaminated the art establishment for so long." Graffiti artist Banksy stencilled "Mind the crap" on the steps of the Tate, who called in emergency cleaners to remove it. The prize was won by Keith Tyson . Other nominees included Liam Gillick and Catherine Yass . Jake and Dinos Chapman caused press attention for a sculpture, Death , that appeared to be two cheap plastic blow-up sex dolls with
4400-589: The end of the Young Friends, whose accommodation was taken over for rehearsals by the National Theatre . In 1970, Serota joined the Arts Council of Great Britain 's Visual Arts Department as a regional exhibitions officer. In 1973 he was made director of the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford (now Modern Art Oxford ), where he organised an early exhibition of work by Joseph Beuys and formed
4488-624: The fact that one of their exhibits, a film in a Kabul courtroom was withdrawn as it related to an ongoing trial of a suspected Afghan warlord. Betting favourite Jeremy Deller won the prize with his film Memory Bucket , documenting both George W. Bush 's hometown Crawford, Texas – and the siege in Waco nearby. The prize money was increased this year with £25,000 to the winner, and, for the first time, other nominees were rewarded (with £5,000 each). Other nominees included Kutluğ Ataman and installation/photograph/sculpture artist Yinka Shonibare , who
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#17327658876904576-420: The first Friday of every month, with half-price admission to exhibitions, live music and performance art. Other public involvement has included the display of visitors', as opposed to curators', interpretation of certain artworks. Regular free tours operate on the hour, and at 1:15 pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday short 15-minute talks are given on paintings, artists and artistic styles. Tate Britain
4664-484: The first black person to win the prize, Ofili also became the first painter to win since Howard Hodgkin in 1985. The Prize was given to Steve McQueen for his video based on a Buster Keaton film. Some media attention was given to Tracey Emin 's exhibit My Bed , which was a double bed in a dishevelled state with stained sheets, surrounded by detritus such as soiled underwear, condoms, slippers and empty drink bottles. Two artists, Yuan Chai and Jian Jun Xi , jumped onto
4752-436: The first video artist to win the Turner Prize. Other nominees included photographer Craigie Horsfield , painter Gary Hume and installation artist Simon Patterson . The winner, Gillian Wearing , showed a video 60 minutes of Silence (1996), where a group of actors were dressed in police uniforms and had to stand still for an hour (occasional surreptitious scratching could be observed). A drunken Tracey Emin walked out of
4840-498: The gallery opened on 21 July 1897 as the National Gallery of British Art. However, from the start it was commonly known as the Tate Gallery, after its founder Sir Henry Tate , and in 1932 it officially adopted that name. Before 2000, the gallery housed and displayed both British and modern collections, but the launch of Tate Modern saw Tate's modern collections move there, while the old Millbank gallery became dedicated to
4928-475: The housing charity, Shelter . The K Foundation went on to make a film in which they burned £1 million of their own money ( Watch the K Foundation Burn a Million Quid ). Other nominees included painter Sean Scully , Laotian-born Vong Phaophanit and printer Hannah Collins . Popular sculptor Antony Gormley was awarded the 1994 Turner Prize. Other nominees included video artist Northern Irish-born Willie Doherty , whose work The Only Good One Is A Dead One
5016-507: The introduction of an annual rehang of the Collection and giving priority to modern and contemporary art. During this period the future of the Prize was uncertain. The Turner Prize was modified to be an artist-only prize without a published shortlist and a solo exhibition was awarded to the winner, Tony Cragg. Sculpture and installation artist Richard Long was presented with the prize after three previous nominations. Controversially, Long
5104-418: The invitation to be nominated. The identity of the Turner Prize is deeply associated with conceptual art . For two of its first editions, Art & Language was nominated in 1986, and Terry Atkinson , one of the founders and historical member of Art & Language, was nominated in 1985. In 2000, Tillmans was the first photographer and first non-British artist to receive the Turner Prize. Malcolm Morley
5192-527: The legalisation of same-sex marriage . It was announced the following day that Tate and Turner Contemporary (the gallery hosting that year's prize) had mutually agreed to terminate the sponsorship with Stagecoach. As much as the shortlist of artists reflects the state of British Art, the composition of the panel of judges, which includes curators and critics, provides some indication of who holds influence institutionally and internationally, as well as who are rising stars. Former Tate Director Sir Nicholas Serota
5280-597: The man in the characteristic attitude in which we all knew him". In 1953, Tate Director, Sir Norman Reid , attempted to have it replaced by Rodin 's John the Baptist , and in 1962 again proposed its removal, calling its presence "positively harmful". His efforts were frustrated by the statue's owner, the Ministry of Works . Ownership was transferred from the Ministry to English Heritage in 1996, and by them in turn to
5368-420: The nation. It is one of the largest museums in the country. The museum had 525,144 visitors in 2021, an increase of 34 percent from 2020 but still well below pre- COVID-19 pandemic levels. In 2021 it ranked 50th on the list of most-visited art museums in the world. The gallery is on Millbank , on the site of the former Millbank Prison . Construction, undertaken by Higgs and Hill , commenced in 1893, and
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#17327658876905456-524: The national collection", and was accused of "snubbing one of Britain's foremost collections". In 2001, Stuart Pearson Wright , winner of that year's BP Portrait Award , said that Serota should be sacked, because of his advocacy of conceptual art and neglect of figurative painting . Knighted in the 1999 New Year Honours and appointed a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in
5544-546: The new Young Friends of the Tate organisation with a membership of 750: they took over a building in Pear Place, south of Waterloo Bridge , arranging lectures and Saturday painting classes for local children. The Young Friends staged their own shows and applied for an Arts Council grant , but were asked to desist by the Tate chairman and trustees, who were concerned with the appearance of official backing for these ventures. Serota and his committee resigned, which precipitated
5632-638: The objects in Brian Haw 's anti-war display in Parliament Square , London. The judges commended Wallinger's work for its "immediacy, visceral intensity and historic importance", and called it "a bold political statement with art's ability to articulate fundamental human truths." The prize was presented by Dennis Hopper . Tate Britain Tate Britain , known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as
5720-412: The opportunity to make "an angry defence" of the Tate's purchase of The Upper Room . The nominees were announced on 16 May 2006. The exhibition of nominees' work opened at Tate Britain on 3 October. Yoko Ono , the celebrity announcer chosen for the year, declared Tomma Abts the winner on 4 December during a live Channel 4 broadcast, although this was part of the evening news broadcast, rather than in
5808-439: The press, and a speech by Sir Nicholas Serota about the purchase of a trustee's work . The prize was named after Turner, because, though he is now considered one of the country's greatest artists, when he was active, his work was controversial. While he is now looked at as a traditionalist, his new approach to landscape painting changed the course of art history, as many of the Turner Prize winners aspire to do. Each year after
5896-444: The press, which reacted with an uncharacteristic dislike for contemporary avant-garde art . Thus Serota remained somewhat distanced from the English establishment , although developing a growing reputation internationally in the art world . In 1984–1985, Serota shut down the Whitechapel for over 12 months' extensive refurbishment. A strip of land had been acquired, which allowed a design by architects Colquhoun & Miller for
5984-510: The prize for HAL , a work consisting of two abstract steel objects, each measuring 244 x 122 cm (96 x 48 in). Other nominees included the Young British Artist (yBA) Damien Hirst for his installations, photographer David Tremlett and sculptor Alison Wilding. Rachel Whiteread was the winner for House , a concrete cast of the inside of a house on Grove Road, near Roman Road, London E3. Jimmy Cauty and Bill Drummond of
6072-499: The prize for 1990. Channel 4 , an independent television channel, stepped in for 1991, doubling the prize money to £20,000, and supporting the event with documentaries and live broadcasts of the prize-giving. Channel 4's head of arts at the time, Waldemar Januszczak , was influential in helping set the format for the prize in the following years, such as arguing for the age limit of 50 that was in place from 1991 until 2017. In 2004, they were replaced as sponsors by Gordon's Gin , doubling
6160-413: The prize money to £40,000, with £5,000 going to each of the shortlisted artists, and £25,000 to the winner. At a press conference for the 2019 prize, bus operator Stagecoach were announced as the lead sponsors of that year's prize, drawing questions from journalists as to whether the company was an appropriate sponsor, due to the chairman Brian Souter 's support of Section 28 laws and campaigning against
6248-424: The prize, dressed as clowns, describing it as an "ongoing national joke" and "a state-funded advertising agency for Charles Saatchi ", adding "the only artist who wouldn't be in danger of winning the Turner Prize is Turner", and concluding that it "should be re-named The Duchamp Award for the destruction of artistic integrity". The Guardian announced the winner of Turner Prize with the headline "Turner Winner Riles
6336-461: The public, although these suggestions are not a significant part of the selection process according to Lynn Barber , one of the 2006 judges. Public nominations were not actively sought for the prize in 2020 or 2021 "given the uncertainties of lockdown". The shortlist (usually of four or five artists) is announced in July; a show of the nominees' work opens at Tate Britain in late October; the prize itself
6424-412: The reopening of the building's Thames-facing entrance as well as a new spiral staircase beneath its rotunda. The circular balcony of the rotunda's domed atrium, closed to visitors since the 1920s, was reopened. The gallery also now has a dedicated schools' entrance and reception beneath its entrance steps on Millbank and a new archive gallery for the presentation of temporary displays. The front entrance
6512-430: The rest of the collection, are subject to rotation. The gallery also organises career retrospectives of British artists and temporary major exhibitions of British Art. Every three years the gallery stages a Triennial exhibition in which a guest curator provides an overview of contemporary British Art. The 2003 Tate Triennial was called Days Like These . Art Now is a small changing show of a contemporary artist's work in
6600-512: The secret buy-back of two of the Tate's Turner paintings that had been stolen in 1994 while they were on loan to a gallery in Frankfurt . The paintings were recovered in 2000 and 2002. In December 2005, Serota admitted that he had submitted an application form with false information to the Art Fund (NACF) for a £75,000 grant to go towards buying the painting The Upper Room , stating that
6688-516: The term 1 February 2017 to 31 January 2025. Serota was succeeded at the Tate by Maria Balshaw . Serota has been criticised by Platform and Liberate Tate for inviting increased sponsorship of the Tate from BP . Their demands were supported by 8,000 Tate members and visitors, and artists including Conrad Atkinson. When questioned about BP sponsorship during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill , Serota responded "We all recognise they have
6776-427: The termination of its support for Tate Britain, blaming the 'extremely challenging business environment'. Although the company denied that the decision was influenced by climate change protests, BP's support for Tate Britain had drawn the attention of activists to the gallery. In 2015, a collective called Liberate Tate had occupied part of Tate Britain and attributed BP's move to climate activism, which has since become
6864-439: The use of contextual irony: each section of the external facade quotes liberally from the building next to it in regard to materials and detailing. Crises during its existence include flood damage to artworks from the River Thames spilling its banks , and bomb damage during World War II. However, most of the collection was in safe storage elsewhere during the war, and a large Stanley Spencer painting, deemed too big to move, had
6952-486: The verdict "one of the most serious indictments of the running of one of the nation's major cultural institutions in living memory". In April 2008, Stuckist artist Charles Thomson started a petition on the Prime Minister's website against Serota's Tate directorship. In September 2016, the Tate announced that Serota would step down as director in 2017, and he would become Chairman of Arts Council England , for
7040-524: Was Chris Ofili 's use of balls of elephant dung attached to his mixed media images on canvas, as well as being used as supports on the floor to prop them up. An illustrator deposited dung on the steps in protest against his work. Ofili won the prize and it was the first time in twelve years that a painter had done so; it was presented by French fashion designer agnès b. Ofili joked, "Oh man. Thank God! Where's my cheque?" and said: "I don't know what to say. I am just really happy. I can't believe it. It feels like
7128-463: Was a judge for an art competition run by the brewers Trumans . In 1980, assisted by Sandy Nairne , he organised a two-part exhibition of 20th century British sculpture. In 1981, he curated The New Spirit in Painting, with Norman Rosenthal and Christos Joachimides for the Royal Academy . The shows, where Serota was helped by his administrator Loveday Shewell, often received adverse reviews in
7216-533: Was awarded due to lack of sponsorship. Under Tate Director and Turner Prize chairman Nicholas Serota, changes are made to involve the public in the viewing of the nominated artist such as a published shortlist, a nomination of four shortlisted artists and an individual exhibition of nominated work within the Tate. Anish Kapoor received the prize for an untitled piece in sandstone and pigment. Other nominees included abstract painters Ian Davenport , Fiona Rae and sculptor Rachel Whiteread . Grenville Davey received
7304-405: Was awarded for his lifetime body of work rather than an exhibition of work in 1989. Other nominees included painter Gillian Ayres , figurative painter Lucian Freud , sculptor Giuseppe Penone , painter Paula Rego , abstract painter Sean Scully and Richard Wilson. Italian-born Giuseppe Penone became the first foreign artist to be nominated for the strength of his exhibitions in Britain. No prize
7392-476: Was educated at Haberdashers' Aske's School (where he became school captain) and then studied economics at Christ's College, Cambridge , before switching to history of art. He completed a master's degree at the Courtauld Institute of Art , London , under the supervision of Michael Kitson and Anita Brookner ; his thesis was on the work of J. M. W. Turner . In 1969, Serota became chairman of
7480-430: Was presented by George Melly . Sculpture artist Tony Cragg was awarded the prize by Alan Yentob . Other nominees included figurative/portrait painter Lucian Freud , Pop artist Richard Hamilton , Richard Long , David Mach (graduate of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art ), printer Boyd Webb, sculptor Alison Wilding and Richard Wilson . The appointment of Tate Director Nicholas Serota led to many changes such as
7568-540: Was the Chair of the jury from the start of his tenure at the Tate in 1988 until 2006. There are conflicting reports as to how much personal sway he has over the proceedings. The media success of the Turner Prize contributed to the success of (and was in turn helped by) such late 1990s phenomena as the Young British Artists (several of whom were nominees and winners), Cool Britannia , and exhibitions such as
7656-413: Was the first video piece to be nominated for the prize, painter Peter Doig and multi-media Shirazeh Houshiary . Damien Hirst was awarded the 1995 Turner Prize, which included his notorious sculpture Mother and Child, Divided . Other nominees included Lebanese-born installation/video artist Mona Hatoum , abstract painter Callum Innes and multi-media artist Mark Wallinger . Douglas Gordon became
7744-541: Was tipped as the public's favourite among the other nominees. A great deal was made in the press about the winning entry by Simon Starling , which was a shed that he had converted into a boat, sailed down the River Rhine and turned back into a shed again. Two newspapers bought sheds and floated them to parody the work. The prize was presented by Culture Minister, David Lammy . Before introducing him, Sir Nicholas Serota, in an "unusual, possibly unprecedented" move, took
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