IN BRIEF
HOLLY JOHNSON TO PRESENT THIS YEAR ’ S TURNER PRIZE IN LIVERPOOL
RIVER OF LIGHT HAILED A SHINING SUCCESS
© Trevor Leighton
The winner of Turner Prize 2022 will be announced by singer and artist Holly Johnson at a ceremony at St George ’ s Hall , Liverpool on 7 December .
Turner Prize 2022 , with work by the four nominated artists : Heather Phillipson , Ingrid Pollard , Veronica Ryan and Sin Wai Kin , is currently on show at Tate Liverpool until 19 March . The prize has returned to the city for the first time in 15 years having helped launch the city ’ s year as European Capital of Culture .
One of the world ’ s best-known prizes for the visual arts , the Turner Prize aims to promote public debate around new developments in contemporary British art . The Turner Prize award is £ 55,000 with £ 25,000 going to the winner and £ 10,000 each for the other shortlisted artists .
Born near Penny Lane in Wavertree , Liverpool , Holly Johnson HonDocArts is an artist , musician , and writer . He is best known as the lead vocalist of Frankie Goes to Hollywood and is renowned for writing the songs , Relax , The Power of Love and Two Tribes . Johnson is also an artist and has exhibited paintings at Tate Liverpool , in the 2000 exhibition Peter Blake : About Collage , and has also shown work at the Royal Academy and Liverpool Biennial .
The members of the Turner Prize 2022 jury are Irene Aristizábal , Head of Curatorial and Public Practice , BALTIC ; Christine Eyene , Lecturer in Contemporary Art , Liverpool John Moores University ; Robert Leckie , Director , Spike Island ; and Anthony Spira , Director , MK Gallery .
The Turner Prize 2022 is curated by Sarah James , Senior Curator , Tate Liverpool , and Matthew Watts , Assistant Curator , Tate Liverpool .
The winner announcement will be broadcast live on the BBC at 19:45 on 7 December . The Turner Prize 2022 Award Dinner is supported by Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and will be catered by The Art School .
The afterglow of Liverpool ’ s River of Light is burning bright with the event once again boosting the local economy .
Across 17 nights , more than 250,000 people – a record number to visit the trail – headed to the city centre to enjoy the free outdoor trail which was organised by Liverpool City Council ’ s award-winning Culture Liverpool team .
Each evening , thousands of people travelled the 2km-long route , enjoying ten large-scale artworks – a mix of world premiere commissions alongside pieces not showcased in Liverpool before . The theme Unexpected Twist played homage to the hugely successful World Gymnastics Championships 2022 which were taking place in the city at the same time .
And River of Light ’ s popularity was felt across the city centre with footfall up , and restaurants , bars and shops reporting a boost in sales .
Liverpool BID Company reported a significant increase in Castle Street footfall day-on-day in comparison with 2019 – with the October event dates proving to be the busiest . Week days experienced an increase of nearly 70 per cent and at weekends it was up by 42 per cent .
Royal Albert Dock Liverpool also welcomed the additional evening visitors with many businesses located on the complex , noting a boost in sales .
And it wasn ’ t just the retail sector which benefited from the event . There has been overwhelmingly positive feedback from the local , national and international artists involved in this year ’ s River of Light trail , with many praising the Liverpool audience , the response to their work and the warm welcome they received here .
A full impact report , which will include feedback from visitors , will now be compiled and the final figures will be released in the new year .
8 merseylife . com