Gold leaf and dust – it's Turner Prize time again

Published on Monday 5 October 2009 22:03

IT IS a wall of gold leaf, a priceless painting – and it will soon be destroyed. The arrival of this, plus a whale skull, a heap of dust derived from the remains of a jet engine and a painting of a workman's naked backside, can signal only one thing: the Turner Prize is now in residence.

Yesterday, the four artists shortlisted for the award unveiled their exhibits in a display that demonstrates the increasing influence of Scots in the world of modern art.

Among the quartet of contenders for the 25,000 prize, the winner of which will be announced in December, is Lucy Skaer, creator of the sperm whale skull exhibit, and Richard Wright, whose intricate gold leaf painting runs across one wall of the gallery. Both are based in Glasgow; Skaer is also a Glasgow School of Art graduate.

Despite the prize's reputation for promoting incomprehensible works, the shortlisted artists demonstrated their ability to draw and paint. Yet this does not mean there will not be a few scratched heads among the visitors – included in the exhibits is a heap of metal dust from an atomised passenger jet engine by Richard Hiorns.

Helen Little, assistant curator, said the engine had been melted down and sprayed through nozzles at high speed to create fine granules. She said his work was about "giving new life to objects. It's a test of faith in technology".

Asked if visitors might question why a heap of dust was on display in Tate Britain, Ms Little said the work was "strangely interesting and beautiful".

Three wall sculptures made up of preserved bovine brain matter, plastic and steel were also among Hiorns's pieces, which Ms Little said "challenged" gallery-goers' perceptions.

Skaer's work includes Leviathan Edge, 2009, the skull of a sperm whale, just visible from behind a screen partitioned with "peep holes". Another piece, Black Alphabet, 2008 is a series of 26 sculptures made from coal dust.

Wright's display includes a highly intricate gold-leaf pattern that took about three weeks to install and will be destroyed when the exhibition closes.

The prize has often sparked controversy – last year, Mark Leckey's winning work included film of cartoon characters such as Homer Simpson. Previous recipients include Gilbert and George, Damien Hirst and transvestite potter Grayson Perry.

Moira Jeffrey, the art critic for Scotland on Sunday, said of the exhibition : "It is an amazing testament to how central Glasgow School of Art and artists who live and work in Glasgow are to contemporary art."

IN THE RUNNING

Lucy Skaer, 34

Born in Cambridge, and graduated from Glasgow School of Art in 1997. She is based in London and Glasgow. She held her first major exhibition in Glasgow's Transmission Gallery in 2001.

In 2007, Skaer was one of the artists chosen for Scotland's pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Her work includes hugely detailed drawings, sculptures and films which often take "found" photographs as their starting point.

Richard Wright, 49

Based in Glasgow, he works worldwide, particularly in America. The Transmission Gallery gave him his first solo show in 1994.

Turner Prize judge Jonathan Jones described him as "the thinking person's graffiti artist." Wright typically paints on to walls or ceilings, and his work is usually painted over at the end of an exhibition.

Enrico David, 44

Born in Ancona, Italy, he was nominated for his solo exhibition Bulbous Marauder at the Seattle Art Museum. He is based in London.

Richard Horns, 34

He is based in London and created a sensation with his 2008 exhibition Seizure.

He filled a derelict apartment with liquid copper sulphate which encrusted into crystals.