East London Art Prize Shortlist Exhibition

20 Jan-19 Feb 2023

Overview

Presenting work by Alaa Alsaraji, Kat Anderson, David Aston, Lulu Bennett, Damien Cifelli, Phoebe Collings-James, Sophie Cunningham, Cora Sehgal Cuthbert, Ufuoma Essi, Woo Jin Joo, Lulu Wang and Xinyao Yu.

Selected by judges Larry Achiampong (artist), Louisa Buck (art critic), Ellie Pennick (Director & Founder, Guts Gallery) and Megan Piper (Director & Co-Founder, The Line), the shortlisted artists were picked from over 650 submissions from artists working or living in east London.

“I think the thing I’ve enjoyed the most is seeing the high level of tenacity and hunger in the submissions; anyone coming to see the shortlist exhibition will equally be impressed by this. They all have strong ambition in what they’re creating and display a hunger for conversation.”

Larry Achiampong (selector)

Themes explored in the shortlisted works include cultural displacement, the shared histories of black British women, isolation and belonging within Muslim communities, and navigating everyday life as a person with disabilities.

The works are moving, probing, funny and poignant, inviting visitors to explore their messages through their varying media, which includes film, ceramic, performance, painting and sculpture.

“All sorts of extraordinary stories have been told [in the shortlist] – expressions of the sheer range of what art can communicate. The shortlist truly demonstrates what an incredibly creative destination east London is.”

Louisa Buck (selector)

The first and second prize winner of the East London Art Prize will be announced at the exhibition private view (Thursday 19 January). The first prize winner will receive a cash prize of £15,000 and a solo exhibition at the Nunnery Gallery; the second prize is a year’s free studio space at Bow Arts’ new building Three Waters in Bow.

The East London Art Prize is generously funded by Minerva and is supported by east London partners the British Council, The Line, London College of Fashion, London Legacy Development Corporation, University College London, V&A East and Whitechapel Art Gallery, as well as Dulux. More about the prize.

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