Aesthetica Art Prize Exhibition 2019

8 March – 14 July, York Art Gallery

The Aesthetica Art Prize is an annual exhibition that invites audiences to explore, discover and engage with new ideas. The works on display cover a range of themes from technology, urbanisation and digitisation to population growth, ecological destruction and climate change. We are living in the Anthropocene. It’s the only time in history that human impact has had such a negative effect on the planet.

Great art can change lives. It reveals things we don’t know and encourages us to think differently. Art is a way to convene, discuss and understand the world. There have been considerable shifts in civilisation in the Information Age – changing the way we communicate with each other. We are experiencing a level of disconnect that has never previously existed. The Digital Age has created a new way of seeing.

The pieces included in this year’s exhibition draw on both personal and universal narratives, looking at how we are so connected to the internet and our own personal profiles – along with likes and shares – that we are forgetting how to forget something. Now is the time to evaluate the wider impact this will have on culture and future generations. In the age of globalisation, societies are becoming homogenised and identity is fluid. What does this mean for the individual?

Main Prize Winner: Jenn Nkiru
Emerging Prize Winner: Maryam Tafakory

View the work of 2019’s Shortlisted Artists | View the work of 2019’s Longlisted Artists.


Lunchtime Talks at York Art Gallery

Led by artists, curators and academics they offered an insight into current themes in the art world.
Visitors can further their appreciation of contemporary art through attending talks held at York Art Gallery.