MANCHESTER’s burgeoning arts scene was celebrated this March with the launch of a brand new annual arts prize, thanks to a public grant from Arts Council England.
My piece is a large format landscape photograph of an area called Odin's Gully in the Peak District, less than an hour’s drive from Manchester
Flooded with more than 200 entries from professional and semi-professional artists across Greater Manchester, the Chamber of Commerce - which runs the initiative - ultimately chose Manchester-based photographer, digital artist and film maker Andrew Brooks as the winner. He beat off stiff competition from across the full spectrum of artistic media, including: paintings, photographs, drawings, mixed media, digital prints, solar etchings and sculptures.
Andrew’s breathtaking photograph, Field Studies – Odin’s Gully (below) was taken in the Peak District in October last year and is one of a series taken over four seasons.
One of the judges, Kwong Lee, Gallery Director at Castlefield Gallery in Manchester, said: “The four judges were unanimous in selecting Andrew Brooks’ composite photography work as the winner of the GM Arts Prize 2016.
"We thought Field Studies – Odin’s Gully has a sublime quality that made us look at it again and again. This original work also reminds us of western classical landscape painting, but updated to a modern day Peak District setting, and made up of photographs taken over four seasons. There is something enduring about this image that speaks to our human existence in the world.”
The winning piece: Field Studies - Odin's Gully
Also on the judging panel were: Paulette Terry Brien, co-director of The International 3 and co-curatorial coordinator of The Manchester Contemporary; Sarah Hardacre, local print artist and former studio manager at Salford’s Hotbed Press; and Louise Durose, General & Legal Counsel at MAN Diesel & Turbo UK Ltd, and avid collector of northern art.
Andrew, recipient of a £1500 cash prize, said of his win: "It’s great to have my landscape picked as the winning piece for the very first GM Arts Prize. There is a fantastic selection of Greater Manchester artists on the shortlist and this prize will be a big help in sharing our work and supporting the city’s artist community.
“My piece is a large format landscape photograph of an area called Odin's Gully in the Peak District, less than an hour’s drive from Manchester. I've been returning to this same spot many times over the last year and recording the changing seasons in vivid detail. This image was captured just after sunrise on late summer’s day."
Commenting on the competition, Joy Sewart, Arts Prize lead and director of operations at Greater Manchester Chamber, said: "We feel passionately at the Chamber that, as businesses, we should not work in isolation, but work alongside artists and the arts community in our region. Working with artists from a variety of genres can not only enrich our businesses, but also provide opportunities for artists to be recognised on a national and international scale, retaining artistic talent in our area.”
Another piece from Brooks' Odin's Gully project
Alongside the three runners-up - Ruby Tingle and Iain Andrews from Manchester and Pat Flynn from Stockport, who each received £750 (see below) - Andrew received an award at the Chamber’s Annual Dinner, which took place on 19 May at Victoria Warehouse.
Commencing in June, the Chamber’s Summer Exhibition will include the winning pieces as well as many of the entries shortlisted for the prize.
The 2017 GM Arts Prize is due to launch on Monday 30 January 2017.
Runner up - Patt Flynns 'Untitled (Smoke)'
Runner up - Ruby Tingles 'In Glamour - Trumpets'
