In 1994 BT New Contemporaries, which opened at Camden Arts Centre, featured work from 36 young artists selected from over 1200 applicants by Turner Prize-winning artist Rachael Whiteread, Patrica Bickers, the editor of Art Monthly and curator Barry Barker.
From these 36, six exhibitors had been selected to receive awards of £1000. BT New Contemporaries is an annual open submission touring exhibition, providing a unique opportunity to see a wise cross section of the work of student and recent graduate artists currently practicing in the UK. It began life as the Young Contemporaries in 1949, and in the fifties introduced us to artists such as Frank Auerbach and Howard Hodgkin. In the following decade it was acknowledged as the cradle of British Pop Art, and after a hiatus the exhibition relaunched at Camden Art Centre in 1974. In recent years it has become a major feature of the UK contemporary art scene, launching the careers of young artists such a Damien Hirst and Maud Sulter, and providing a high profile platform for artists in their formative years.
A full colour catalogue was available.
