Lawrence Abu Hamdan has used «sound effects to help six survivors» of the prison syrian high security Saydnaya «to remember and map the architecture that is unknown to the prison», said the judges of the Turner prize, organized by the Tate Britain. In this prison, some 13,000 people were hanged between 2011 and 2015 by the syrian regime, according to Amnesty International.
The artist, who was born in Jordan and based in Beirut, is particularly susceptible to the impact of walls on our perception of reality and our memory of events. In another of his works, a video of twenty minutes is also praised by the jury, he has constructed a grand narrative of justice based on interviews with witnesses to malfeasance, not visually, but by hearing, by hearing what was happening on the other side of the wall.
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Among the other three finalists included the London-based Helen Cammock for his video celebrating the role of women in the movement for civil rights in 1968 in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.
The Colombian Oscar Murillo, the London-based, was named for its ability to «push back the barriers of materials» by incorporating painting, drawing, performance, sound and sculpture» in his work which gives an account «of the social effects of globalization,» commented the jury.
Finally, the London-based Tai Shani has been selected for its theatrical performance in which she paints the allegory of a city of women, adapting the book feminist 1405 city of ladies of Christine de Pizan, and manages to «combine historical texts and contemporary problems.»
The works of the four finalists will be on display at the gallery, Turner Contemporary, in the city of Margate, in the south-east of England, from 28 September to 12 January 2020. The winner of the prize will be announced on the 3rd December 2019 and will receive a sum of 25,000 pounds (29.000 euros), while each runner up will receive 5.000 pounds (5.800 euro).
