THE JOHN MOORES PAINTING PRIZE LIVERPOOL BIENNIAL EXPOSITION held at the Walker Art Gallery, LIVERPOOL The first John Moores exhibition was held in 1957, six years after the Walker Art Gallery re-opened after World War II. The Liverpool Autumn Exhibitions, which up till 1939 had acted as the gallerys main showcase for new British art, had come to an end. The gallerys only regular shows of contemporary art were those of the local Liverpool Academy. The suggestion that the Walker Art Gallery mount an exhibition of painting embracing...the best and most vital work being done today throughout the country (as the catalogue of the 1957 exhibition put it) came from John Moores, founder of the Littlewoods company based in Liverpool. A man of fierce local pride - and a keen amateur painter - he was concerned at Londons increasing domination of the national arts scene. He established the event as a competition open to anyone and sponsored the prizes. The first John Moores was intended as a one-off, but its great success led to it becoming a biennial event. By the early sixties, the exhibition was regarded as the UK’s leading showcase for avant-garde painting. Many of the prizewinning works were purchased by John Moores and presented to the Walker Art Gallery for its permanent collection. Among them were classic paintings by Jack Smith (Creation and Crucifixion), William Scott, Roger Hilton (March 1963) and David Hockney (Peter getting out of Nicks Pool). These and other purchases from the exhibition ensured that the Walker Art Gallerys representation of post-war British art was the equal of any other collection in the UK, the Tate only excepted. The second Biennial John Moores Exhibition opened at Liverpools Walker Art Gallery on 17 November 1959. Among the exhibits was Summer Painting by Stuart Sutcliffe, an art school student and friend to John Lennon. The painting was bought by John Moores himself for £65 when the show ended on this day. The sale was a coup for a nascent artist, and a considerable sum for the time. He was persuaded by Johnny and the Moondogs to buy a Hofner President bass guitar. Stuart Sutcliffe was a friend of Johns from art college. Stuart had sold a painting for £65. So what do you do with £65? We all reminded him over a coffee: Funny you should have got that amount, Stuart - it is very near the cost of a Hofner bass. He said, No, I cant just spend all that. It was a fortune in those days, like an inheritance. He said he had to buy canvases or paint. We said, Stu, see reason, love. A Hofner, a big ace group... fame! He gave in and bought this big Hofner bass that dwarfed him. The trouble was he couldnt play well. This was a bit of a drawback, but it looked good, so it wasnt too much of a problema.-Paul McCartney In the late 1960s and 1970s, as newer media challenged painting and the range of exhibiting opportunities for cutting-edge artists grew, the John Moores lost some of its unique status. During this period, the Walker Art Gallery did not always acquire the first prizewinner and the show was occasionally subjected to fierce criticism. However, it always retained its reputation as the UKs leading painting biennale and its first prize has continued to be one of the largest of any of this country’s art competitions. Since 1980, the Walker Art Gallery has automatically added the first prize-winning work to its collection as part of the terms of the award.
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 08:19:34 +0000
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