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‘Artes Mundi: Wales International Visual Arts Prize’ is an ambitious if slightly
muddled initiative. The £40,000 award comes attached with a group exhibition
of the shortlisted artists, an additional purchase prize, open nominations,
studio visits, two selectors, five judges and a clunky title with the catch-all
thematic of ideas surrounding the human form or human condition, which
focuses on work that adds to our understanding of humanity.

Now in its second year, ‘Artes Mundi’ aims to celebrate emerging
international artists who have gained recognition at home and are making an
impact overseas. The confusion perhaps starts here. Any exhibition of
emerging artists that includes Thomas Demand is surely in need of some
scrutiny (major solo show at MOMA anyone?). This, twinned with the inclusion
of a Wales-based artist for the second year running, rankles. Obviously such
prizes are created to highlight the host country. A bit of positive discrimination
is welcomed as long it is declared, rather than saying that Sue Williams – a
relative unknown – was a purely coincidental choice for the selectors/curators.

Somewhere, spread confusingly across the impressive halls of the
National Gallery and Museum of Wales, and smothered in suffocating
branding and educational material, which pervades like a bad smell, is an
exhibition. The only distinguishable emerging artist is Wu Chi-Tsung, who, at
only 25, promises an exciting career. His video work and accompanying
photographs focus on extended views of the Guandu Bridges in Taiwan from
the artist’s window. In particular, Rain (2002) shows the bridge on a rainy
day shot at fast speed so that the rain drops flicker manically across the
screen, creating a disconcerting yet engaging image.





The aforementioned Thomas Demand and Sue Williams are situated
upstairs with Mauricio Dias & Walter Riedweg. Whilst Demand’s three pieces
work (un)intentionally well with the stillness and calmness of the Museum’s
surrounding collection, Williams dominates two galleries to less effect with a
rather more bullish approach. Scratchy collections of drawings and notes are
stapled to the walls alongside large collaged, graffiti-strewn images of women
and young girls. The all-over effect is rather numbing, coming across as sixth-
form feminist note book scribbles. These have none of the scatological
crudeness or signs of subsequent development of her US namesake’s work.
Back down stairs, Leandro Elrich’s corridor installation of projected foliage
shadows seems superfluous and theatrical rather than hypnotic and mystical.

The eventual winner of the prize, Eija-Liisa Ahtila, is an established favourite
of critics and curators. Whilst The House (2002) continues to engage with its
split screens and story of psychosis, it is accompanied here by the rather
more twee The Hour of Prayer (2005). I find it impossible to ignore the
comparison with directors such as Paul Thomas Anderson or Todd Solondz,
who create similar fractured narratives of psychosis, grief and despair more
successfully. By far the best room is by Subodh Gupta. A reversed video
shows the artist emerging golem-like from a shower covered in dung.
Surrounding sculptures include everyday Indian objects such as wrapped
belongings or cooking utensils which are sat atop half a taxi and attached to a
bicycle or displayed along the wall. Gupta cleverly intertwines local and global
attitudes by both monumentalising and fetishising real and fictional
stereotypes.

However, the overriding feeling of ‘Artes Mundi’ is of confusion, of the
brand being more important than the exhibition; the need to be liked by the
widest possible audience more important than the art. ‘Artes Mundi’ wants to
be all things to all people: it wants to be the largest arts prize, to support
emerging artists as well as including flagship artists, to promote Wales, be
universally popular and educational, and gain international acclaim and
credibility. No bad thing, but it’s hard to see the woods for the trees.

gordon dalton

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