Four Artists, Four Worlds | York Vision

(Image: Patricie Sperkova)

Nnena Kalu, Rene Matić, Mohammed Sami and Zadie Xa: these are the four artists shortlisted for the Turner Prize 2025, one of Britain’s most famous awards in contemporary visual arts, founded by Tate in 1984.  

For the first time, the exhibition is being held in Bradford. Inside the stunning Cartwright Hall Art Gallery in Lister Park (near the Frizinghall train station), each room is dedicated to one of the shortlisted artists. The main hall serves as an exhibition hub featuring in-depth films about the artists’ stories and confessions.

Rene Matić

Matić’s politically charged installation combines photography, sound, textile and sculpture to explore identity, solidarity and protest. One of the most striking works is a white flag reading “no place” on one side and “for violence” on the other, which was created as a reaction to the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in 2024. Their short film, shown in the exhibition hub, discusses the idea of “Britishness.” The film is so inspiring to watch, and you’ll catch yourself wanting to jot down every sentence they say.

Zadie Xa

Xa also grapples with questions of identity and home in her film, experiencing the urge to escape her hometown in order to find herself. Calling herself an installation artist, you’ll find yourself immersed in the most sensorially engaging room of the exhibition, feeling like stepping into an colorful underwater world. As you walk, the golden floor reflects the surrounding paintings, textiles, sculptures and yourself, all accompanied by sound emerging from real hanging shellfish. Inspired by ocean life, folk art, Korean shamanism and spiritual symbolism, she transforms the room into an alternate world. 

Nnena Kalu

Kalu, who finishes her work on site in order to respond to the space, presents hanging sculptures made from loops and tubes wrapped in fabric, tape, rope, cling film and other materials. Their ambiguous and abstract shapes evoke animal bodies and movement. Sculptures are accompanied by drawings that give us a sense of flow, playing with different shapes, pressure and repetition. Learning later that Kalu is autistic with verbal impairments and works in collaboration with ActionSpace in London supporting learning-disabled artists was interesting, as her approach to the creative process is very unique.

Mohammed Sami

Sami presents large-scale paintings on linen that capture unexpected structures and fragments of life with ambiguity. The titles of the paintings give us clues about interpretation but they don’t resolve it. For example, one canvas (see picture) of a sunflower field trampled by horses is titled Masacre. It is not a war scene, but could be. What happened beyond the frame? The titles he chooses, such as “Hiroshima Mon Amour” give us a sense of unease.

It was refreshing to see the diversity and range of media on display: paintings, photography, sound, sculptures or textiles and whole installations; every visitor can find their own favourite medium to engage with. Diversity, in fact, feels like the main value of the Turner Prize: the shortlist includes underrepresented cultures and backgrounds. 

As ever, the Turner Prize has provoked lively debate in the media over the role of contemporary art and its relationship with politics. The winner, who will receive £25,000, will be announced on 8 December 2025.

The Turner Prize 2025 exhibition is open from 27 September 2025 to 22 February 2026 at Cartwright Hall Art Gallery, Bradford. Admission is free. 

Tip: If you fancy an easy and affordable day out, check out other events by Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture. As a student, you can also request Youth Pass, which will give you access to creative workshops and other fun activities for free.