28 Apr 2018

Dr Peter Shand - The Turner Prize and Luke Willis Thompson

From Saturday Morning, 10:45 am on 28 April 2018

This week, local artist Luke Willis Thompson has been named as only the second-ever New Zealander to make the shortlist for the UK's Turner Prize, one of the world's most prestigious awards. The 30-year-old Aucklander, whose father is Fijian-born, has recently been interviewed on Saturday Morning for his 35mm film autoportrait, a silent portrait of Diamond Reynolds, the partner of Philando Castile, who was shot by a police officer after a traffic-stop in Minnesota in 2016. Thompson won the prestigious Walters Prize in 2014, and his works have been exhibited around the world. The Turner Prize recipient will be announced on December 4, and the four artists shortlisted will have their work exhibited at Tate Britain from September 25. Kim talks to Head of Elam School of Fine Arts at the University of Auckland, Peter Shand, who has closely followed Thompson's practice for almost a decade and will explain further the significance of the nomination.