The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize is led by founding Director, Professor Anita Taylor, Dean of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design at the University of Dundee and supported by the Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust.

The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize celebrated its 25th annual exhibition in 2020. Since its inception in 1994, the exhibition has established a reputation for its commitment to championing excellence and promoting and celebrating the breadth of contemporary drawing practice within the UK. This open exhibition provides a platform for drawing practitioners in the UK and internationally to showcase their work alongside other leading contemporary artists and makers in the field.

The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize is led by its founding Director, Professor Anita Taylor, Dean of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design and Director of Drawing Projects UK and is supported by the Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust.

The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize project was founded in 1994 by Anita Taylor and Paul Thomas as the Rexel Derwent Open Drawing Exhibition and was known from 1996 until 2000 as the Cheltenham Open Drawing Exhibition. During this period, it was supported by a private benefactor, Westland Nurseries, The Summerfield Trust, CHK Charities and Rootstein Hopkins Foundation. More recently, the exhibition was known as Jerwood Drawing Prize with 17 years of significant support from Jerwood Charitable Foundation from 2001 until 2017. The 10th anniversary special exhibition Drawing Breath was supported by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Henry Moore Foundation and HongKong Land. The project celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2014 with the exhibition Drawn Together at Jerwood Gallery in Hastings. Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust became the principal benefactor in 2018.

Please see our website for further information: trinitybuoywharfdrawingprize.drawingprojects.uk

Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust: In 1998 the then owners, London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC), set up the Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust with a 125-year lease to hold the land and their vision in trust for the people of London, while the freehold was passed to the LB Tower Hamlets. The TBW Trust holds a 125-year lease from LB Tower Hamlets and Urban Space Management in turn has a 124-year lease from the Trust. The terms provide for 25% of the Wharf’s income to be paid to the Trust to use for promoting arts activity in the area. To date the Trust has supported and funded a wide range of arts projects and organisations. Trinity Buoy Wharf is a thriving centre for the arts and creative industries with a rare community of over 500 like-minded people enjoying the unique riverside location. Free from overdevelopment, the site’s fascinating history can still be seen in the buildings, installations, and residents including the Royal Drawing School and The Big Draw.

Professor Anita Taylor is Director of the Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize Project and Drawing Projects UK and Dean of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design at the University of Dundee. An artist, curator and educator, her former academic leadership roles include Executive Dean of Bath School of Art & Design at Bath Spa University, Director & CEO of the National Art School in Australia, Dean of Wimbledon College of Art and Director of The Centre for Drawing at University of the Arts London, and Vice Principal of Wimbledon School of Art.

Drawing Projects UK was founded to deliver the then Jerwood Drawing Prize in 2009 and is now a centre for drawing and contemporary art in Wiltshire. Situated in a landmark building adjacent to Trowbridge railway station, Drawing Projects UK houses a gallery, project space, studios and workspaces, meeting rooms and café. Drawing Projects UK aims to promote, develop and build a community through drawing in local, regional, national and international contexts through research and public engagement activities. Drawing Projects UK publishes the annual Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize exhibition catalogue and delivers public engagement activities for the annual exhibitions.

Parker Harris is the Project Manager of the Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize. Parker Harris is one of the leading visual arts consultancies in the UK, creating and managing a range of contemporary visual arts projects, nationally and internationally. Clients include trusts and foundations, SMEs, multinationals, charities, arts organisations and individual artists.