New Zealander in the running for Britain’s premier art award, the Turner Prize

September 25, 2018

Entries are often controversial like Damian Hirst’s 1995 winner – a pregnant cow cut in two.

A New Zealand artist is taking the UK art world by storm with his work nominated for the Turner Prize - the contemporary art world equivalent of an Oscar.

Luke Willis Thompson, 30, is just the second Kiwi to be nominated singularly for the award which is for British based artists.

His piece, a silent film about a woman who filmed the aftermath of her boyfriend being shot by police in the US state of Minnesota in July 2016 goes on display tomorrow along with the three other Turner Prize finalists.

His film, now showing in the corner of Tate Britain features a silent Diamond Reynolds on a giant screen. 

"She's an extraordinary woman... and I reached out to her to make a film about her."

His film is a stark contrast to what made Reynolds famous, a Facebook live video she recorded in 2016 just after her boyfriend Philando Castile was shot dead by police. It was viewed more than 6 million times.

"I wanted to think...what can I do as at artist to assist her, and because I'm interested in making images I became very interested in the counter image, a way to present her that would make her feel very real to an audience,"Thompson says.

He spent nine months liaising with her and her lawyer to create the piece highlighting racial inequality.

Elsa Coustou, assistant curator of the Turner Prize exhibition says the judges are impressed by Thompson's work.

"The jury felt very compelled by this artwork...because it touches on such a universally injustice story which can touch everyone and a response to acts of police violence around the world," she said.

The prize winner will be announced in early December.

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