| Flash Art n.272 May – June 2010 LONDON Biennials, fairs and art prizes too have been subjected to massive proliferation over the past few years. London alone can count at least six or seven, among which is the Max Mara Art Prize for Women. Nominations are a mixed blessing; the bright side being visibility, as well as a chance to be acknowledged by the group of fi ne brains that usually constitute the judging panel; the downside being the competition, as every prize has just one winner. Furthermore, the sometimes ambiguous relationship between artists, jurors and hosting institution often bears scrutiny; every single existing prize, to a bigger or lesser degree, has experienced similar twists of fate, with arguments and protests about money, criteria, qualifi cation and integrity. All in all it’s a bleak scenario; so why would someone want to step in? |
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The Max Mara Art Prize for Women at the Whitechapel Art Gallery seems to have carefully considered all this when it entered the art prize arena. For a start, the number of nominated artists is restricted to three — a situation of exclusivity that guarantees to the finalists an equal degree of public respect. Second, they’re not invited to submit an existing work, but a project to bedeveloped over the course of a sixmonth residency. Third, they don’t walk away with cash in their pocket and a few lines of mention in the broadsheets, but with the satisfaction of seeing their work produced and exhibited in one of the city’s most historical and prominent settings. As for the standard requirement of identity, it’s a prize for London-based women assigned by London-based women. The formula of the Max Mara Art Prize is inclined towards the future and focuses on potentially interesting works by artists potentially on their way to a bright career, as this year’s lineup of Becky Beasley, Andrea Büttner and Elizabeth Price confirms. The nominators/jurors committee, comprised of artist Fiona Banner, gallerist Alison Jacques, art collector Valeria Napoleone, Chisenhale’s Director Polly Staple, and chaired by the Whitechapel’s Director Iwona Blazwick, went for Büttner, who will exhibit her work in Spring 2011 once her residency in two separate locations in Italy (the American Academy in Rome and the Pistoletto Foundation in Biella) will be completed. As for the final destination of her work, Collezione Maramotti, the fashion-house Max Mara family collection, will be presented with a favorable purchasing option during the time of the show. Now in its third year of life, the prize is strongly consolidating its reputation. There are still a few points that could be straightened out (six months devoted to the production of one single work represent a serious financial and temporal engagement for an artist) but the overall impression is that the whole venture was born under a good sign. The real treat is the surprise element. The anticipation is not about who’s going to be the winner, but about what the winner will do. And Büttner’s work, with its tantalizing references and media variety, is more than enough to keep the London public eagerly awaiting. |
