Eastbourne art gallery announces winner of ‘prestigious’ £10,000 award

Brewers Towner International is an open call exhibition of contemporary art that takes place at Towner Eastbourne in Devonshire Park. The second edition features a range of artists coming together to share work which addresses the theme of ‘sanctuary’.

The Brewers Towner Award of £10,000, sponsored by Brewers Decorator Centres, is given to one of the exhibiting artists alongside mentoring from the Towner team. The winner of the ‘prestigious’ award has been announced as Harald Smykla.

Harald Smykla, who is based in London, studied painting/printmaking at Karlsruhe Academy of Fine Art in Germany.

A spokesperson from the gallery said: “His practice evolved into merging unorthodox notions of drawing and other traditional media with performative and participatory strategies, exploring contexts of place and time, materiality, process and interaction. His practice of social engagement in the public realm – especially through street market projects - involves people of all backgrounds as incidental audiences and active participants, e.g. in acts of ‘re-facing’ banknotes, produce-based chess games, collective cardiography, research into art and emotion, dental sculpting, hand-drawn projection mapping and other approaches to artistic interaction with the public.”

Mr Smykla added: “Being selected for the Brewers Towner International and winning this award has given me a strong sense of validation of my current art practice - especially after the dearth of opportunities to present work ‘in real life’ during the pandemic.”

The exhibition has been put together by the Towner’s exhibitions and offsite curator Noelle Collins. She said: “His convincing and direct work appeals to us all, and is highly accessible whilst remaining complex. The London-based, German artist makes images which ‘rewild’ press images, providing respite from the ‘bad news’ in the form of colour and texture.”

Brewers chairman Mark Brewer added, “The open call for Brewers Towner International is an opportunity to recognise and appreciate how artistic communities are reflecting and responding to the economic, political, cultural, and environmental changes that are unfolding in the contemporary moment. Artists have studied the places that have become a sanctuary throughout the pandemic - finding solace in the studio, the home and the landscape. The resulting exhibition brings together a community of artists, makers and storytellers, examining subjects as varied as pattern, memory, identity and the migratory experience”