GAVIN TURK (Chairman)

”I am looking forward to chairing the judging of The National Open Art Competition this year. I think it is among the leading open art competitions in the country...celebrating the quality of contemporary artists across the UK”.

Gavin Turk first caught the attention of critics in 1991 when his tutors at the Royal College of Art refused to give him a degree! This resulted in the infamous blue plaque commemorating his presence as a sculptor. A founder member of the Young British Artists, along with Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, and the Chapman brothers. Gavin has spent much of his career questioning identity and authorship, often mimicking famous icons such as Andy Warhol, Che Guevara, and Marilyn Munroe. In 2009 he co-founded with his partner Deborah Curtis; the House of Fairy Tales, a not-for-profit touring arts organisation, which uses an innovative and transformative learning experiences for young people and their families, promoting national and local creative education, reaching out to a wide range of cultures and abilities.

CATHERINE LAMPERT

“It is exciting to participate in a competition where the object is to have fresh eyes and no expectations. The association with the town of Chichester, and its art-friendly populace and amenities, is another enticement.”

As a former director of the Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, Catherine Lampert was instrumental in creating a gallery of international stature. She established the gallery’s education and outreach projects which worked extensively with under-privileged communities in East London. Catherine Lampert’s published works include books on Auguste Rodin, Euan Uglow, Lucian Freud and Frank Auerbach. She is also a well respected curator and art critic. Currently showing at the National Portrait Gallery are four portraits by Auerbach of Lampert, one of his principal sitters.

DAVID BARRIE

"I am delighted to be invited to join the panel of judges for myself and Piran and trust our eye will add a valuable contribution to such an esteemed college of selectors.”

David Barrie is a director of an insurance broker, and has an alter ego painting as Piran Strange, an established and collected artist with frequent shows in London. Much of his work is in private collections.

LISA WRIGHT

"I feel privileged as the 2009 winner of the prize to be invited onto the judging panel for 2010. I look forward to viewing and selecting the works for the competition which historically has celebrated the breadth and quality of both abstract and figurative work across the UK."

Lisa was born in Kent in 1965 and lives and works in Cornwall. She studied at the Royal Academy Schools (1990-93). Lisa is a figurative artist who has become known for her paintings of children. In 2003 she won the Hunting Art Prize and in 2006 was short listed for the first Sovereign European Art Prize. In 2007 her work was selected for the Art Now exhibition at the Tate Gallery, St Ives.
Following a two year residency with the Royal Shakespeare Company during their production of The HistoriesCycle, an installation of works was exhibited at The Round House, The Beardsmore Gallery and at The Royal Academy of Art's Cafe Gallery London, throughout 2008. Lisa is a lecturer at University college Falmouth and is represented by the Beardsmore Gallery London.