The National Army Museum Long-Listed for £100,000 Art Fund Prize 2010
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The National Army Museum in London is one of eleven institutions long-listed for the £100,000 Art Fund Prize, the UK’s largest single arts prize. The long list has been selected by a panel of Judges chaired this year by broadcaster Kirsty Young. Traditionally the long list comprises ten, but for the 2010 Prize eleven institutions have been nominated, attesting to the high quality and volume of applications received.
The National Army Museum is nominated for Conflicts of Interest, a new gallery exploring the impact of four decades of conflict on British soldiers and civilians worldwide. Opened in September 2009, the gallery examines the role of the British Army in conflicts including Afghanistan, Iraq, Northern Ireland, the Falklands and Kosovo as well as pressing issued facing the military today. Conflicts of Interest is a living exhibition, capturing history as it happens, updated regularly by the Museum and incorporating daily feedback and opinions of its visitors.
Of the nomination, Mairead O’Hara, Curator at the National Army Museum said: “We are delighted to be nominated for the Art Fund Prize. It was important for us to create a gallery that examines contemporary conflicts from many perspectives. The greatest challenge was to design a living, evolving gallery that could reflect developments in the stories of today’s soldiers. Judging by the public’s response, Conflicts of Interest, has proved to be a vital space for the discussion of contemporary conflicts.”
The £100,000 prize is awarded to the museum or gallery for a project completed in the last year, that the Judges deem demonstrates the most originality, imagination and excellence. The Prize, which has been sponsored by the UK’s leading independent art charity, The Art Fund, for three years, aims to increase public appreciation and enjoyment of the UK’s museums and galleries.
This year two new institutions are celebrated through nomination; Great North Museum in Newcastle and Towner in Eastbourne. The long list includes Britain’s oldest public museum, The Ashmolean, as well as the rescue and restoration of The Leach Pottery in St Ives, the world’s most influential studio pottery established by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada in 1920. Following a three year development, The Ulster Museum in Belfast also features. The eleven long-listed museums and galleries are:
- The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
- Blists Hill Victorian Town, Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust
- Great North Museum: Hancock, Newcastle
- Hampton Court Palace, Surrey, for Henry VIII: heads and hearts
- The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry
- The Leach Pottery, St Ives
- The National Army Museum, London, for Conflicts of Interest
- The Natural History Museum, London, for the Darwin Centre
- The Royal Institution of Great Britain, for Science in the Making
- Towner, Eastbourne
- The Ulster Museum, Belfast
Kirsty Young, Chair of the Judges comments: “My fellow Judges and I deliberated passionately and at length, and even then it was impossible to select less than eleven for the long list. The quality of applications was simply outstanding. We are delighted with our selection and feel that this year’s long list demonstrates a snapshot of the UK’s incredible cultural offerings.”
Stephen Deuchar, Director of The Art Fund, comments: “This year’s long-listed museums and galleries have shown such depth of imagination and drive; they are a testament to the wealth of culture on offer right across the UK. I for one can’t wait to see how the judges’ journeys unfold from now until the end of June when the winner is announced.”
The Judges will travel the UK to visit each of the eleven long-listed museums and galleries before selecting a short list of four, to be announced at the end of May 2010. The winner of the £100,000 prize will be announced on Wednesday 30 June 2010 at the Royal Institute of British Architects in London.
The 2010 judging panel comprises:
- Kirsty Young (Chairman), broadcaster
- Kathy Gee, museums and heritage adviser
- Professor A C Grayling, Professor of Philosophy, Birkbeck College, London
- Professor J Steve Jones, Professor of Genetics, University College London
- Sally Osman, communications consultant and former Director of Communications, BBC
- Lars Tharp, Director, The Foundling Museum and BBC Antiques Roadshow expert
- Jonathan Yeo, artist
The public can vote for their favourite long-listed institution and leave comments for the Judges on the Art Fund Prize website telling the Judges why they should win. The poll results and online comments will be given to the Judges for their consideration when selecting the Short List and Winner. Visitors to the website can enter an exclusive competition to win a limited edition Jonathan Yeo print.
To vote, comment or for more information about the Prize go to: www.artfundprize.org.uk
Sky Arts returns as the TV Media partner for this years’ Art Fund Prize and will go behind the scenes in a 30 minute documentary that will broadcast on Sky Arts 2 HD throughout May and June. The documentary will take a look at each of the long-listed museums and galleries and follows the developing story as the panel of judges visit the eleven venues all vying for the prestigious £100,000 prize. For more information go to: www.skyarts.co.uk/artfundprize
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Notes to editors:
The Art Fund Prize for museums and galleries is administered by the Museum Prize Trust, a charitable company created in 2002 by The Art Fund, the Campaign for Museums, the Museums Association and National Heritage. Its trustees are Penelope, Viscountess Cobham (Chair), James Bishop (National Heritage), Ylva French, Mark Taylor (Museums Association), Sam Mullins and Sandy Nairne (representing The Art Fund).
The Museum Prize is registered as a company in England and Wales No. 421870 and a charity No. 1093174. Registered Office: 24 Calvin Street, London E1 6NW.
The Wedgwood Museum in Stoke-on-Trent was awarded The Art Fund Prize in 2009 and the 2008 winner was The Lightbox museum and gallery in Woking. Previous winners of the then Gulbenkian Prize include Pallant House Gallery, Chichester (2007), Brunel’s ss Great Britain, Bristol (2006), Big Pit: National Mining Museum of Wales, Blaenafon (2005), The Scottish Gallery of Modern Art for Landform by Charles Jencks (2004), and the National Centre for Citizenship and the Law at the Galleries of Justice, Nottingham (2003).
The Art Fund is the UK’s leading independent art charity. It offers grants to help UK museums and galleries enrich their collections; campaigns on behalf of museums and their visitors; and promotes the enjoyment of art. It is entirely funded from public donations and has 80,000 members. Since 1903 the charity has helped museums and galleries all over the UK secure over 860,000 works of art for their collections. Recent achievements include: helping secure Anthony d’Offay’s collection, ARTIST ROOMS, for the nation in February 2008 with a grant of £1million, and touring the collection throughout the UK in 2009 and 2010; and creating the ‘Buy a Brushstroke’ public appeal which raised over £550,000 to keep Turner’s Blue Rigi in the UK. For more information contact The Art Fund Press Office on 020 7225 4888 or visit www.artfund.org.
The National Army Museum explores the impact of the British Army on the story of Britain, Europe and the world; how Britain's past has helped to shape our present and our future and how the actions of a few can affect the futures of many. The National Army Museum was established by Royal Charter to tell the story of the land forces of the Crown wherever they were raised. Opened by the Queen in 1960, it moved to its current site in Chelsea in 1971. It is the museum of the British Army and the Indian Army (until 1947), and its Collection spans hundreds of years of history.
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