Most people have heard of the Turner Prize. Its critics say that is its point and although the GBP20,000 (about HK$250,400) award is intended to recognise the work of British artists under the age of 50, its real purpose is to stir up as much controversy as possible.
In this it has succeeded with the help of Rachel Whiteread, who won in 1993 and was additionally awarded a Worst Artist prize of GBP40,000 by a group protesting the Turner, Damien 'pickled shark' Hirst who won in 1995, and an indignant British tabloid press.
Now there is the Hugo Boss Prize. The prize money of US$50,000 (about HK$387,000) is bigger, it is much wider in scope (there is no age or nationality limit), and it is administered under the auspices of the Guggenheim Museum in New York where the public appears to be less fazed by the artistically unexpected. The prize was inaugurated in 1996; it was awarded last month for the second time.
As an exercise in viewing where contemporary art is going, the exhibition which accompanies the prize is, in every sense, eye-opening. The work of the six finalists, including two Asian artists, will remain on display at the Guggenheim SoHo until September 20 and is worth a visit if you happen to be in New York.
Do not expect anything as quaint as a painting: not one of the six has chosen to use the more recognised modes of expression.
Huang Yongping's installation, for instance, is perhaps the most memorable. Huang, 44, is from Fujian province where, in 1986, he formed a group of artists called Xiamen Dada which acknowledged the influence of the surrealist Marcel Duchamp.
