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TheTurner Prize, named after the English painterJ. 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 atTate Britain every other year, with various venues outside of London being used in alternate years.[1] Since its beginnings in 1984 it has become 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, includingChannel 4 television andGordon's Gin. A prominent event inBritish culture, the prize has been awarded by various distinguished celebrities: in 2006 this wasYoko Ono, and in 2012 it was presented byJude Law.
It is a controversial event, mainly for the exhibits, such asThe Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living – a shark in formaldehyde byDamien Hirst – andMy Bed, a dishevelled bed byTracey Emin. Controversy has also come from other directions, including Culture MinisterKim Howells criticising exhibits, a guest of honour (Madonna) swearing, prize judgeLynn Barber writing in the press, and a speech by SirNicholas Serota about the purchase ofa trustee's work. The Guardian has called the 2025 award the "soppiest ever".[2]
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.[3] 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.[3]
Each year after 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?"[4][5]
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 the public, although these suggestions are not a significant part of the selection process according toLynn Barber, one of the 2006 judges.[6] Public nominations were not actively sought for the prize in 2020 or 2021 "given the uncertainties of lockdown".[7] 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 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 commercialsponsorship. By 1987, money for the prize was provided byDrexel Burnham Lambert; its withdrawal after its demise led to the cancellation of the prize for 1990.[8]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.[9] In 2004, they were replaced as sponsors byGordon's Gin, doubling the prize money to £40,000,[10] 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 operatorStagecoach 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 chairmanBrian Souter's support ofSection 28 laws and campaigning against the legalisation ofsame-sex marriage.[11] It was announced the following day that Tate andTurner Contemporary (the gallery hosting that year's prize) had mutually agreed to terminate the sponsorship with Stagecoach.[12]
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 SirNicholas Serota was the Chair of the jury from the start of his tenure at the Tate in 1988 until 2006.[13] There are conflicting reports as to how much personal sway he has over the proceedings.[according to whom?]
The media success of the Turner Prize contributed to the success of (and was in turn helped by) such late 1990s phenomena as theYoung British Artists (several of whom were nominees and winners),Cool Britannia, and exhibitions such as theCharles Saatchi-sponsoredSensation 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.[14]Chris Ofili,Anish Kapoor andJeremy Deller later became trustees of the Tate. Some artists, includingSarah Lucas andJulian Opie, have declined the invitation to be nominated.[15]
The identity of the Turner Prize is deeply associated withconceptual art. For two of its first editions,Art & Language was nominated in 1986, andTerry 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 was 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 includedRichard Long,Richard Deacon andGilbert & George, all of whom went on to win the Turner Prize themselves. The prize was awarded byLord Gowrie, Minister for the Arts at the time.[16][17]
Howard Hodgkin was awarded the Turner Prize forA Small Thing But My Own. Other nominees includedTerry Atkinson, sculptorTony Cragg,Ian Hamilton Finlay,Milena Kalinovska and painting/printing artistJohn Walker. The prize was awarded by celebrity presenter SirRichard Attenborough.[18][19]
The controversial art duoGilbert & George were awarded the prize after a previous nomination in 1984. Other nominees includedArt & Language (collaborative group composed of Michael Baldwin and Mel Ramsden), sculpture/printing artistVictor Burgin, painterDerek Jarman, painterStephen McKenna and sculptorBill Woodrow.[20][21]
Sculpture artistRichard Deacon was awarded the prize. Other nominees included graphic-style painter/printerPatrick Caulfield,Helen Chadwick,Richard Long,Declan McGonagle andThérèse Oulton. The prize was presented byGeorge Melly.[22][23]
Sculpture artistTony Cragg was awarded the prize byAlan Yentob. Other nominees included figurative/portrait painterLucian Freud, Pop artistRichard Hamilton,Richard Long,David Mach (graduate ofDuncan of Jordanstone College of Art), printer Boyd Webb, sculptorAlison Wilding andRichard Wilson. The appointment of Tate Director Nicholas Serota led to many changes such as 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.[24][25]
Sculpture and installation artistRichard Long was presented with the prize after three previous nominations. Controversially, Long was awarded for his lifetime body of work rather than an exhibition of work in 1989. Other nominees included painterGillian Ayres, figurative painterLucian Freud, sculptorGiuseppe Penone, painterPaula Rego, abstract painterSean Scully and Richard Wilson. Italian-born Giuseppe Penone became the first foreign artist to be nominated for the strength of his exhibitions in Britain.[26]
No prize 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.[27]
Anish Kapoor received the prize for an untitled piece in sandstone and pigment. Other nominees included abstract paintersIan Davenport,Fiona Rae and sculptorRachel Whiteread.[28]
Grenville Davey received the prize forHAL, a work consisting of two abstract steel objects, each measuring 244 cm × 122 cm (96 in × 48 in). Other nominees included the Young British Artist (yBA) Damien Hirst for his installations, photographerDavid Tremlett and sculptor Alison Wilding.[29][30]
Rachel Whiteread was the winner forHouse, a concrete cast of the inside of a house on Grove Road, near Roman Road, London E3.Jimmy Cauty andBill Drummond of theK 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 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 painterSean Scully, Laotian-bornVong Phaophanit and printerHannah Collins.[31][32]
Popular sculptorAntony Gormley was awarded the 1994 Turner Prize. Other nominees included video artist Northern Irish-bornWillie Doherty, whose workThe Only Good One Is A Dead One was the first video piece to be nominated for the prize, painterPeter Doig and multi-mediaShirazeh Houshiary.[33]
Damien Hirst was awarded the 1995 Turner Prize, which included his notorious sculptureMother and Child, Divided. Other nominees included Lebanese-born installation/video artistMona Hatoum, abstract painterCallum Innes and multi-media artistMark Wallinger.[34][35]
Douglas Gordon became the first video artist to win the Turner Prize. Other nominees included photographerCraigie Horsfield, painterGary Hume and installation artistSimon Patterson.[36][37]
The winner,Gillian Wearing, showed a video60 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 drunkenTracey Emin walked out of a live Channel 4 discussion programme, presented as part of the coverage of the award. The discussion was chaired byTim Marlow and also includedRoger Scruton,Waldemar Januszczak,Richard Cork,David Sylvester andNorman Rosenthal.[38] Emin wrote about the incident in her 2005 bookStrangeland, describing her shock at readingThe Guardian writeup the following day.[39]
This was the only time in history with an all-female shortlist including sculptorChristine Borland,Angela Bulloch and sculptorCornelia Parker.[40]
The talking point wasChris 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 designeragnès b.[41] 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 a film and I will watch the tape when I get home."[41] One of Ofili's works,No Woman No Cry is based on themurder of Stephen Lawrence, killed in a race attack.[41]
The jury included musicianNeil Tennant, authorMarina Warner, curator Fumio Nanjo andBritish Council officer Ann Gallagher, chaired by Nicholas Serota.[41]
Other nominees included installation artistTacita Dean, sculptorCathy de Monchaux and video artistSam Taylor-Wood. In addition to being the first black person to win the prize, Ofili also became the first painter to win since Howard Hodgkin in 1985.[42][43]
The Prize was given toSteve McQueen for his video based on aBuster Keaton film. Some media attention was given toTracey Emin's exhibitMy 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 the bed, stripped to their underwear, and had a pillow fight. Police detained the two, who called their performanceTwo Naked Men Jump into Tracey's Bed. Other nominees includedSteven Pippin and collaborative sibling duoJane and Louise Wilson.[44][45]
The prize was won byWolfgang Tillmans. Other entries included a large painting byGlenn Brown based very closely on a science fiction illustration published some years previously.[46]Michael Raedecker andTomoko Takahashi were also nominated.
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TheStuckist art group staged theirfirst demonstration against the prize, dressed as clowns, describing it as an "ongoing national joke" and "a state-funded advertising agency forCharles 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 TheDuchamp Award for the destruction of artistic integrity".The Guardian announced the winner of Turner Prize with the headline "Turner Winner Riles the Stuckists".[47]
Controversy was caused by winnerMartin Creed's installationWork 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.[48] At the prize ceremony,Madonna gave him the prize and said, "At a time when political correctness is valued over honesty I would also like to say "Right on, motherfuckers!".[49] This was on live TV before the 9 pmwatershed and an attempt to"bleep" it out was too late. Channel 4 were subsequently given an official rebuke by the Independent Television Commission.[50]
Other nominees included photographerRichard Billingham, video/installation artist (and now film director)Isaac Julien and installation artistMike Nelson.
The media focused on a large display byFiona Banner whose wall-size text piece,Arsewoman in Wonderland, described apornographic film in detail.The Guardian asked, "It's art. But is it porn?" calling in "Britain's biggest porn star",Ben Dover, to comment.[51] Culture MinisterKim 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 the dreaded Turner prize. It has contaminated the art establishment for so long."[52] Graffiti artistBanksy stencilled "Mind the crap" on the steps of the Tate, who called in emergency cleaners to remove it.[48] The prize was won byKeith Tyson.
Other nominees includedLiam Gillick andCatherine Yass.
Jake and Dinos Chapman caused press attention for a sculpture,Death, that appeared to be two cheap plastic blow-up sex dolls with a dildo. It was in fact made of bronze, painted to look like plastic.[citation needed]
Attention was also given toGrayson Perry who exhibited pots decorated with sexual imagery, and was the prize winner. He wore a flouncy skirt to collect the prize, announced by SirPeter 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 a phone call asking if I would be a judge for theNot the Turner Prize. And two years ago I was asked by theStuckists to dress as a clown and come and be on the steps outside, so I am thrilled and slightly surprised to be here."[53]
Other nominees includedWillie Doherty (his second nomination since 1994) andAnya Gallaccio.[citation needed]
The media focused on a large computer simulation of a former hideout ofOsama bin Laden byBen Langlands and Nikki Bell, as well as the fact that one of their exhibits, a film in aKabul courtroom was withdrawn as it related to an ongoing trial of a suspected Afghan warlord.[14] Betting favouriteJeremy Deller won the prize with his filmMemory Bucket, documenting bothGeorge W. Bush's hometownCrawford, Texas – andthe 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 includedKutluğ Ataman and installation/photograph/sculpture artistYinka Shonibare, who was tipped as the public's favourite among the other nominees.
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A great deal was made in the press about the winning entry bySimon Starling, which was a shed that he had converted into a boat, sailed down theRiver 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 the opportunity to make "an angry defence" of the Tate's purchase ofThe Upper Room.[54][55]
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, declaredTomma Abts the winner on 4 December during a live Channel 4 broadcast, although this was part of the evening news broadcast, rather than in 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 ofGordon's Gin.
Under theFreedom of Information Act,The Sunday Telegraph obtained emails between the Tate and judgeLynn 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.[56]
More controversy ensued when Barber wrote inThe Observer about her troubles as a judge, even asking, "Is it all a fix?",[6] a comment subsequently displayed on a Stuckist demonstration placard, much to her chagrin.[57]
The judges were:
The winner of the £25,000 Prize wasMark Wallinger.[58] His display at the Turner Prize show wasSleeper, a film of him dressed in a bear costume wandering around an empty museum, but the prize was officially given forState Britain, which recreated all the objects inBrian Haw's anti-war display inParliament Square, London.[58] 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."[58] The prize was presented byDennis Hopper.[58]
For the first time in its 23-year history, the Turner Prize was held outside London, inTate Liverpool (in support ofLiverpool being theEuropean Capital of Culture in 2008), following a suggestion by gallery worker Jason Richardson. Concurrently there was an exhibition of previous winners at Tate Britain in London.
Unlike recent years, SirNicholas Serota was not the jury chairman; instead, the chairman was Christoph Grunenberg, the Director of Tate Liverpool. The panel was:[59]
The nominees were:[60]
Nelson and Wallinger had both previously been nominated for the prize.
TheStuckists announced that they were notdemonstrating for the first time since 2000,[61] because of "the lameness of this year's show, which does not merit the accolade of the traditional demo".[62] Instead, art group AAS re-enacted previous Stuckist demonstrations in protest against their own practice at the Royal Standard Turner Prize Extravaganza.[63]
Mark Leckey was the winner of the Turner Prize of 2008.
For the second year running, Sir Nicholas Serota did not chair the Turner Prize jury; instead Stephen Deuchar, director of Tate Britain, was the chair. The other members were Jennifer Higgie, editor offrieze, Daniel Birnbaum, rector of theStädelschule international art academy, Frankfurt, architectDavid Adjaye, and Suzanne Cotter, senior curator,Modern Art Oxford.[64] The prize winner received £25,000 and the other three nominees £5,000 each. In recent years the prize has attracted commercial sponsorship, but did not have any during the 2008 events.[64] The nominees wereRuna Islam,Mark Leckey,Goshka Macuga, andCathy Wilkes; the Prize exhibition opened at Tate Britain on 30 September and the winner was announced on 1 December.[65]
The winner of the £25,000 Prize wasRichard Wright.[66]Stephen Deuchar again chaired the jury.
The other shortlisted artists wereEnrico David,Roger Hiorns andLucy Skaer.[67]
The winner wasSusan Philipsz who graduated fromDuncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design in Dundee. She was the first artist ever to win with a purely aural work, having made an installation under three bridges inGlasgow in which she sang folklorised versions of thesea shanty "Lowlands Away". For the Turner Prize, the work consisted simply of loudspeakers installed along the walls in a gallery room. The other artists nominated wereDexter Dalwood,Angela de la Cruz, and theOtolith Group.[68]
The 2011 Turner Prize took place inGateshead at theBaltic Centre for Contemporary Art, away from the Tate in London for the first time since 2007. The winner wasMartin Boyce.[69] The other nominees wereKarla Black,Hilary Lloyd andGeorge Shaw. The prize ceremony was interrupted by the international streakerMark Roberts who was hired by the artist Benedikt Dichgans.[70]
149,770 people visited the exhibition in Gateshead[71] making it the most visited Turner Prize exhibition ever.[72]
The nominees for the 2012 prize wereSpartacus Chetwynd,Luke Fowler (graduate ofDuncan of Jordanstone College of Art),Paul Noble andElizabeth Price.
FormerTalulah Gosh member Elizabeth Price was awarded the £25,000 prize.[73]
The 2013 Turner Prize were held atEbrington Square inDerry, the first-time the prize was awarded outside England, as part of theUK City of Culture celebrations.The prize jury was chaired byPenelope Curtis, Director of Tate Britain.The nominees for the 2013 award wereLaure Prouvost,Tino Sehgal,David Shrigley, andLynette Yiadom-Boakye.The winner of the 2013 prize wasLaure Prouvost.
The nominees for the 2014 award wereDuncan Campbell,Ciara Phillips,James Richards andTris Vonna-Michell.[74] The winner of the 2014 prize wasDuncan Campbell.[75]
The nominees for the 2015 award wereBonnie Camplin,Janice Kerbel,Nicole Wermers, andAssemble.[76] The winner of the 2015 prize was Assemble.[77] The exhibition was held in Glasgow, Scotland, in the Tramway, a contemporary art, theatre and dance space.[78]
The nominees for the 2016 award wereMichael Dean,Anthea Hamilton,Helen Marten, andJosephine Pryde.[79] The winner wasHelen Marten.[80]
The nominees for the 2017 award wereLubaina Himid,Rosalind Nashashibi,Hurvin Anderson, andAndrea Büttner.[81] The exhibition was held in Hull, at theFerens Art Gallery, as part ofHull UK City of Culture 2017.[82] The winner wasLubaina Himid.[83]
The nominees for the 2018 award wereForensic Architecture,Naeem Mohaiemen,Charlotte Prodger, andLuke Willis Thompson. All four were video artists.
The shortlist was drawn up by writer and critic Oliver Basciano, Elena Filipovic, director,Kunsthalle Basel; Lisa Le Feuvre, executive director of Holt/Smithson Foundation; and novelistTom McCarthy. The winner wasCharlotte Prodger.[84]
The 2019 award was hosted at theTurner Contemporary in Margate, Kent. The shortlisted artists wereLawrence Abu Hamdan,Helen Cammock,Oscar Murillo andTai Shani, who were jointly awarded the prize as a collective following their request to be considered as a single group.[85][86]
It was announced in May, at a late stage in judging, that this year's award would be replaced by abursary for 10 artists who would be announced in July due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.[87]
The 10 artists to receive bursaries were:Oreet Ashery,Liz Johnson Artur,Shawanda Corbett, Jamie Crewe, Sean Edwards,Sidsel Meineche Hansen, Ima-Abasi Okon, Imran Perretta,Alberta Whittle, and the political arts organisation Arika.[88]
Hosted in Coventry, the 2021 nominees wereArray Collective, Black Obsidian Sound System, Cooking Sections,[89] Gentle/Radical, and Project Art Works.[90] Array Collective were announced as the winners on 1 December 2021.[91][92]
On 12 April 2022, it was announced that the nominees for the prize wereHeather Phillipson,Ingrid Pollard,Veronica Ryan, andSin Wai Kin.[93] Veronica Ryan was announced as the winner.
Jesse Darling won the award in 2023, hosted in Eastbourne.[94] Nominees were Jesse Darling,Ghislaine Leung,Rory Pilgrim andBarbara Walker[95]
On 24 April 2024, it was announced that the nominees for the prize wereJasleen Kaur,Pio Abad,Claudette Johnson, andDelaine Le Bas.[96] On 3 December, Kaur was announced as the winner, for her animations of everyday objects. She won £25,000.[97]
The 2024 Turner Prize ceremony was held at the Tate Britain. In her winner's speech, Kaur voiced her supported for protestors outside the venue, called for a ceasefire in the Middle East, and referenced a letter signed by "over 1,200 artists and art workers" in November 2024, which called on "Tate to sever ties with two of its funding partners,Outset Contemporary Art Fund andZabludowicz Art Trust".[98]
The Delaine Le Bas installation at the 2024 Turner Prize came under scrutiny for suspected plagiarism of an earlier work by Edgeworth Johnstone, who was protesting outside Tate Britain on the day of the award ceremony.[99]
On 23 April 2025, the four artists shortlisted for the 2025 Turner Prize were announced: Nnena Kalu,Rene Matić, Mohammed Sami, andZadie Xa.[100][101]
"If this is the best British artists can produce then British art is lost. It is cold mechanical, conceptual bullshit.
Kim Howells.
P.S. The attempts at conceptualisation are particularly pathetic and symptomatic of a lack of conviction."
The Turner Prize has spawned various other prizes in reaction to or ridiculing it. In 1993, theK Foundation gave an "Anti-Turner Prize" of £40,000 for the "worst artist in Britain" with the same short list as the official prize: the winner of both prizes wasRachel Whiteread. In 1999, Trevor Prideaux organized the ongoingTurnip Prize as "a crap art competition... You can enter anything you like, but it must be rubbish"; the judging criteria include "Lack of effort" and "Is it shit?"
In 2000, theStuckists instituted "The Real Turner Prize" for painters, and an "Art Clown of the Year Award" for "outstanding idiocy in the visual arts," both continued in the subsequent years (the Clown award given in 2002 to Serota).[108]
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