Today, Camden Art Centre and Frieze announce Tenant of Culture as the recipient of the 2020 Camden Art Centre Emerging Artist Prize with Frieze. Tenant of Culture, who is represented by Soft Opening, London, will realise a major exhibition at Camden Art Centre in 2022.
Tenant of Culture, Country Styles for the Young (Series), 2020 Courtesy the artist and Soft Opening, London Photography Theo Christelis
Victoria Siddall, Global Director of Frieze Fairs said:
“The Camden Art Centre Emerging Artist Prize at Frieze is a major platform for artists to gain invaluable institutional recognition at a crucial stage of their career. I look forward to seeing Tenant of Culture’s exhibition in London in 2022.”
The annual Emerging Artist Prize – unveiled for the first time at Frieze London 2018 and now in its third year – offers invaluable critical exposure to an emerging artist, concurrent with their first show at a London institution. The prize winner will be supported by the experienced Camden Art Centre curatorial team, and the show will be underpinned by an extensive programme of public talks and events.
Tenant of Culture is the artistic practice of Hendrickje Schimmel (b. 1990, Arnhem, Netherlands), who lives and works in London, UK. The artist’s practice is characterised by a repurposing of discarded materials to birth new forms in a critique on consumer culture and wastefulness.
Tenant of Culture was selected from the 35 galleries from 21 countries in the Focus section of the Frieze Viewing Rooms, the fair’s celebrated section supporting younger galleries and artists in earlier stages of their careers.
Tenant of Culture, Country Styles for the Young (Series), 2020 Courtesy the artist and Soft Opening, London Photography Theo Christelis
Speaking about the award, Antonia Marsh, Director, Soft Opening said:
“We could not be more delighted about this opportunity for Tenant of Culture, at one of the most exciting institutions in the UK. It’s wonderful to start working towards and looking forward to this exhibition.”
The 2020 Prize was selected by a panel chaired by Martin Clark (Director, Camden Art Centre), with Gina Buenfeld (Exhibition Curator, Camden Art Centre) and Rob Leckie, Director, Spike Island, Bristol. A group of UK and international patrons have generously supported the Prize, including Lead Supporters Alexandra Economou, Noach Vander Beken and Georgina Townsley. These patrons share an interest in supporting the work of emerging artists and the economy of younger galleries within the contemporary art scene.
Tenant of Culture, Fluo, Flames, Camouflage, 2017 Courtesy the artist and Soft Opening, London Photography Theo Christelis
Martin Clark, Director, Camden Art Centre said of the winner:
“We’re delighted to award this year’s prize to Tenant of Culture and very much look forward to begin working with her on the show. The panel were unanimous in their praise for the way the artist literally opens up and exposes narratives of labour, production, luxury and waste held in the processes and products of the fashion industry, as well as the broader social and cultural histories of the clothes we wear. These ideas speak to increasingly urgent issues beyond the worlds of art, design and fashion. We are also thrilled to be supporting a London based artist, showing with a young London based gallery, this year.”
For over 25 yea
Tenant of Culture
Tenant of Culture is the artistic practice of Hendrickje Schimmel (b. 1990, Arnhem, Netherlands), who lives and works in London, UK. She received her MA in Mixed Media from the Royal College of Art, London in 2016, and completed a BA in Womenswear at Hogeschool voor de Kunsten, Zwolle in 2012. Forthcoming solo exhibitions include: Fons Welters, Amsterdam (2021), Sophie Tappeiner, Vienna (2021) and Soft Opening, London (2022). Recent solo exhibitions include I forgot to tell you I’ve changed at Het Fries Museum, Leeuwarden (2020), Eclogues (an apology for actors) at Nicoletti Contemporary, London (2019), Works and Days at Outpost Gallery, Norwich (2018), Deadstock at Sarabande Foundation, London (2018), Climate | Change at Clearview, London (2017) and The Latest Thing at CODE ROOD Koningsweg, Arnhem (2016). Selected group exhibitions include: Fittings with Kinke Kooi at Exile Gallery, Vienna (2020), Image Power at Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem (2020), Transformers at Future Gallery, Berlin (2020), Gubbinal at Project Native Informant, London (2019), NEW RUINS at Soft Opening, London (2019), Out of Fashion at Centraal Museum, Utrecht (2017), Bloomberg New Contemporaries at Institute of Contemporary Art, London (2016), Tradition and Innovation in Dutch Design at Mikimoto Gallery, Tokyo (2014), Fetishism in Fashion at MoBA Biennial, Arnhem (2013) and Dead’s Alive, Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam (2012). In 2020 Soft Opening published Tenant of Culture’s first monograph in collaboration with Charles Asprey.
Soft Opening
Founded in January 2018 by Antonia Marsh, Soft Opening presents UK-based and international emerging contemporary artists, often their first solo presentations in London. Soft Opening built its early program with projects that responded to the gallery’s unique first location in Piccadilly Circus Underground Station. Encouraging a collaborative approach to exhibition-making, this unusual subterranean space maintains a focused curatorial objective. The gallery began representing an intimate roster of artists in January 2019 when Marsh opened a second space in East London. 2020 saw the launch of Soft Opening’s first substantial publication, an artist monograph focusing on the early career of Tenant of Culture. @soft_opening
