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From: Rachel Potts Category: ArtExhibitions Date: 25 October 2006 Time: 07:54 AM Review: I LIKE THE TURNER PRIZE The two best ones were Tomma Abts and Mark Titchner. Lots of people seem to not like his work because it pretends to be political but doesn’t mean anything, or it seems too show offy without saying something, I like it though. I think there’s something good about showing off, I think because it’s a bit like taking a risk and having lots of self-belief or belief in what you’re making, it has energy even if its bad, or people don’t like it. Also it has the impression that an artist just really thinks their work is amazing and quite fun, and isn’t really answering to anyone, even though they might be involved and serious about theory. Abt’s paintings aren’t big and showy, but they are showy in the way that they are really beautiful. Still, they look a bit old, referencing styles in the past, the colours are muted, but not dull. What’s amazing is the light in them, and conversely I really like how subtle they are and their introverted or contemplative quality, their blankness which seems kind of contradictory to liking something extravagant and extroverted. Saying that, Titchner’s work is contemplative and blank in its way, because it’s nearly like a lot of things but unlike anything. Lots of art is ‘suggestive’ of stuff though, and it’s like that idea of ‘between abstraction and figuration’ which you hear all the time and can be applied to almost all art I think. How do you define it more? I don’t know. Titchner’s work is more theatrical and louder maybe because it has words and exclamation marks in it. But its like the sentences he uses are equally a borrowed piece of the world, like the style of one of abts’ paintings reminding you of Russian constructivism. I hate Rebecca Warren’s lumpy clay things, but her vitrines were really nice. They were being serious about little pieces of fluff. I didn’t look at the video (Phill Collins). Generally I like the Turner prize because it’s a bit like a magazine, I’m always excited to go when it starts even if I hate it all. And even though everyone gets cross and says its rubbish they do talk about it.