Turner Prize shortlist 2010 announced

At the newly opened Turner Prize show, one artist asks 'when is a painting not a painting?', while another fills a gallery room with a recording of 16th century Scottish songs...

Works from four artists competing for the Turner Prize 2010 were unveiled yesterday at the Tate Britain gallery.

Dexter Dalwood, Angela de la Cruz, Susan Philipsz and The Otolith Group are the four artists in the running for the coveted £25,000 award, to be announced on December 6, 2010.

Previous winners of the Turner Prize, which has thrived on controversy over the years, include Grayson Perry, a cross-dressing potter, and Martin Creed, whose installation in 2001 featured lights going on and off in an empty room.

‘They are not looking for controversy,’ said exhibition curator Katharine Stout, referring to the panel of judges who narrowed the list of contemporary artists based in Britainand under 50 years of age to a shortlist of four. ‘What we have is a quite distinctive but incredibly strong selection.’

The artist who questions the definition of painting is 45-year-old Spanish sculptor de la Cruz, who has created 3D pieces – brightly covered canvases twisted and contorted by the broken wooden frames to which they are attached.

Glasgow-born Philipsz, 44, is the first artist working primarily in sound to be shortlisted for the Turner, and for her installation called ‘Lowlands’ she sings old Scottish laments through a sound system.

The Otolith Group, comprising artists Kodwo Eshun and Anjalika Sagar, has made a 26-minute film partially inspired by a screenplay by Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray called ‘The Alien,’ combining old black-and-white footage with new images.

Fellow nominee Dalwood is the only painter in the show. His room features pieces that tackle well-known moments from recent history, the most talked about of which is likely to be ‘Death of David Kelly,’ dated 2009.

The exhibition opens today and runs to January 3, 2011 at The Tate Britain.

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