The entries for this years Derwent Art Prize have now been put up onto the competitions’ website for the public to see, and there are some interesting things I noticed. Among the expected photorealistic portraits taken from family photo’s, celebrity love letters and dogs, there are some genuinely interesting drawings such as “Footsteps”. I noted some Jerwood entries from last year that failed to make it into the Derwent exhibition, but when looking at the selected artists something occurred to me. A series of drawings entitled “A Fall of Ordinariness and Light” by the artist Jessie Brennan were selected. Having recently read an article on these pieces my suspicions are peaked. This series was commissioned by the Foundling Museum for an exhibition called “Progress” (on now), which brought together Brennan’s work alongside the likes of David Hockney and Grayson Perry to celebrate the 250th anniversary of William Hogarth. I may be mistaken somewhere, and in no sense am I saying Brennan’s drawings do not deserve a place, but the rules clearly state the pieces must not have been exhibited elsewhere. Though Progress is not a major show, the likes of the Derwent art prize judges would most likely be aware of these pieces prior to the selection process. This makes the object of a fair and unbiased selection seem impossible. Whether the judges have deliberately forgotten their own rules, or have unwittingly done so, it makes the world of fine art seem impenetrable to anyone other than those who are already within its ranks.
jineshrevagar liked this
chase-on-art-blog posted this