International award for UCLan professor and Turner Prize nominee

The University of Central Lancashire’s (UCLan) Professor of Contemporary Art and Turner Prize nominee Lubaina Himid MBE has been named Artist of the Year by Apollo Magazine.

The artist beat off strong competition from the likes of David Hockney to win the prestigious title, which is one of a series of Apollo Awards handed out annually to celebrate major achievements in the art and museum worlds.

The award follows an exciting year for Lubaina, which includes the Turner Prize nomination and solo exhibitions at Modern Art Oxford and Spike Island in Bristol.  She has spent her 35-year career shining a light on the African diaspora and the slave industry through her paintings, drawings and installations.  Speaking to Apollo Magazine, Lubaina said her work demonstrates “that black people have contributed to European cities – many were built on the money earned from the slave trade – and have influenced the cultural landscape.”

The Preston-based artist, who will find out if she’s won the Turner Prize on the 5 December, is able to share her wealth of experience with students at UCLan in her role as Professor of Contemporary Art and PhD supervisor.

She said: “The Apollo Artist of the year award means a great deal, firstly because I’ve never won an artists’ prize before and it was a magnum of champagne, but also more seriously it’s great to be able to thank all the people who have supported me, including my students and my colleagues at UCLan.”

The Executive Dean of the Faculty of Culture and Creative Industries, Dr Andrew Ireland, added: “We are delighted for Lubaina who is in the midst of a very exciting time in her career.  Both the city and University benefit enormously from her work and we are proud of what she has achieved.”