Aesthetica Art Prize alumni continue to demonstrate excellence across the globe. Learn more about聽artists who聽have聽headlined聽leading biennials and聽had solo shows at top cultural institutions.
Liz West | Installation
Liz West was a finalist in the 2016 Art Prize. The artist鈥檚 installations aim to heighten the senses; they present colour as a psychological and physical phenomenon. West has been commissioned worldwide by the Natural History Museum, National Trust and London Design Festival. The work has been published in Wallpaper*, Design Boom聽and books by Thames & Hudson and Gingko Press. In Spring 2021, the artist unveils a new project 鈥 transforming the Greenwich Peninsula with a ribbon of undulating colour.
Tadao Cern | Sculpture
鈥淚 take everyday objects or occurrences, strip them to their basic concepts and reintroduce them as art.鈥 Tadao Cern has featured in the Aesthetica Art Prize twice: in 2016 and 2017. Since then, the Black Balloons project 鈥 shown here 鈥 has been seen in Tokyo, Beijing, New York, Paris, Venice, Cologne, with coverage in Vice, Widewalls, Designboom and Colossal. In 2019, the artist was featured in The Guardian鈥檚 My Best Shot photography feature 鈥 recognising a key image highlighted by the 2016 prize.
Jenn Nkiru | Video
British-Nigerian director Jenn Nkiru won the 2019 Aesthetica Art Prize for Rebirth Is Necessary. The work is the summation of the filmmaker’s feelings and questions about the Black experience. In 2018, the film screened before Black Panther at the London premiere. Nkiru won the Voice of a Woman award at Cannes Film Festival. She has had premieres at Frieze, showing at MOCA, ICA and Somerset House . In 2020, she won the Jarman Award and was nominated for a Grammy for Beyonc茅鈥檚 music video Brown Skin Girl.
Sim Chi Yin | Photography
Magnum photographer Sim Chi Yin was shortlisted for the Aesthetica Art Prize in 2019. Most People Were Silent 鈥 commissioned by Nobel Peace Prize 鈥 pairs two landscapes closely associated with the nuclear weapons industry in the USA and North Korea. Beyond the Art Prize, the artist has spoken at Barbican Centre, London 鈥 exploring the interconnect between images, agency and the environment. In November 2020, she won the Jimei x Arles Discovery Prize and as a result has a solo show at Les Rencontres d鈥橝rles, France, in Summer 2021.
Emmanuelle Moureaux | Installation
Emmanuelle Moureaux鈥檚 artistic vision was shaped by a trip to Tokyo in 1995. The city鈥檚 infinite layers of people, language and nature continue to inspire her 3D environments.聽Forest of Numbers 鈥 a multicolour work comprising of hundreds of paper digits 鈥 celebrated the 10th anniversary of The National Art Center, Tokyo. In 2020, the work was named 2020 A+Awards Jury Winner. The French architect has also created installations for UNIQLO and ISSEY MIYAKI. In 2017, she was shortlisted for the Aesthetica Art Prize.
Image Credits:
1. Liz West, Our Colour, Site-specific Installation (T5 fluorescent bulbs, cellulose gels), Dimensions variable, this image shows 10,000 sq ft, 2016. 漏 Liz West.
2. Tadao Cern, Black Balloons, 2016. Rubber, plastic, sulfur hexafluoride, carbon dioxide, helium. 900cm x 900cm. Courtesy of the artist.
3. Jenn Nkiru, Neneh Cherry, Kong, 2018. 漏 Jenn Nkiru.
4.聽Emmanuelle Moureaux, Universe of Words, 2019. Images: 漏 daisuke shima.
5.聽Sim Chi Yin, Most people were silent, 2017. Courtesy of the artist.
