Jesse Darling wins Turner Prize 2023

Jesse Darling – whose work uses unusual and commonplace material to comment on societal breakdown – was announced as the winner of the Turner Prize 2023 at a ceremony held last night at Eastbourne’s Winter Garden, adjacent to Towner Eastbourne, the host of this year’s prize.

Darling was nominated for the £25,000 prize alongside Ghislaine Leung, Rory Pilgrim and Barbara Walker. An exhibition all work by all four shortlisted artists is on display at Towner Eastbourne until 14 April next year.

Curated by Noelle Collins, the museum’s exhibitions and offsite curator, the exhibition is part of a year-long festival, Towner 100, marking the centenary of Towner Eastbourne.

The jury for the Turner Prize 2023, which includes Melanie Keen, director of the Wellcome Collection, commended Darling’s use of materials such as concrete, welded barriers, hazard tape, office files and net curtains to “convey a familiar yet delirious world”.

Born in Oxford but now based in Berlin, Darling works in different mediums from sculpture to performance, often using industrial materials and everyday objects to explore ideas around domesticity, class, power and Britishness.

Alongside Keen, the Turner Prize 2023 jury are: Martin Clark, director of Camden Art Centre; Cédric Fauq, chief curator at the Capc musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux; and Helen Nisbet, chief executive and artist director of Cromwell Place. The jury is chaired by Tate Britain director, Alex Farquharson.

The Turner Prize will celebrates its 40th anniversary next year, returning to Tate Britain for the first time since 2018.

The prize aims to promote public debate around new developments in contemporary British art and is awarded to an artist born or based in the UK for an outstanding exhibition or presentation of their work in the preceding 12 months twelve months.