Tim Shaw (born 1964) is a

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

-born sculptor and

contemporary visual art Contemporary art is a term used to describe the art of today, generally referring to art produced from the 1970s onwards. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is ...

ist working in Cornwall UK. Tim Shaw was elected to be a Royal Academician in 2013 and won the Jack Goldhill Award for Sculpture at The Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition in 2015.

Education

Tim Shaw completed an art foundation course at

Manchester Polytechnic Manchester Metropolitan University is located in the centre of Manchester, England. The university has 40,000 students and over 4,000 members of staff. It is home to four faculties (Arts and Humanities, Business and Law, Health and Education ...

and then a BA (Hons) Fine Art degree at

Falmouth University Falmouth University is a specialist public university for the creative industries based in Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth and Penryn, Cornwall, Penryn, Cornwall, England. Founded as Falmouth School of Art in 1902, it was later known as Falmouth C ...

Major works

In 2009 Shaw's sculpture ''Middle World'' was shortlisted for the

Threadneedle Prize The Columbia Threadneedle Prize (formerly The Threadneedle Prize) is a major art prize, which showcases contemporary figurative art. It was launched by the Mall Galleries in 2008. The prize is open to any artist, eighteen or over, who is living or ...

. From 2000 to 2004, Shaw was also working on a commission from

The Eden Project The Eden Project () is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay clay pit, pit.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS Explorer Map 107 – Fowey, Looe & Lostwithiel''. . The complex is dominated by two h ...

for an installation that would span the entire vine exhibit in the Mediterranean Biome. One of the figures originally intended for this installation was held back at the time due to concerns that it would be found too controversial. These fears were seen to have some foundations when Shaw's 2007 version of the figure, a three-metre high, "naked, portly, and proudly erect" rendering of ''

Silenus In Greek mythology, Silenus (; , ) was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus. He is typically older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue ('' thiasos''), and sometimes considerably older, in which case he may be referred to as a Pa ...

'', was attacked during its exhibition in a Vyner Street gallery in London's East End by a man wielding an iron bar, shouting "You're worshiping the wrong God!". The influence of myth, seen in Shaw's early work, is once again present in his 2008 sculpture, ''Minotaur'', a piece that was commissioned to mark the opening of

Harrison Birtwistle Sir Harrison Birtwistle (15 July 1934 – 18 April 2022) was an English composer of contemporary classical music best known for his operas, often based on mythological subjects. Among his many compositions, his better known works include '' T ...

's Opera, ''

The Minotaur In Greek mythology, the Minotaur (, ''Mīnṓtauros''), also known as Asterion, is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "par ...

''. After this, however, the more political side to his work becomes increasingly evident with a number of sculptures responding to issues such as terrorism and the

war in Iraq This is a list of wars involving the Republic of Iraq and its predecessor states. , style="background:#F88" , Coalition of Gulf War, Coalition victory * Kuwait, State of Kuwait resumes self-governance over all Kuwaiti sovereign territory * Esta ...

. At this time Shaw was working in London as a Fellow sculptor at the

Kenneth Armitage William Kenneth Armitage (18 July 1916 – 22 January 2002) was a British sculptor known for his semi-abstract bronzes. Life Armitage was born in Leeds on July 18, 1916, the youngest of three children studied at the Leeds College of Art and t ...

Foundation. The main works he produced during this 2006 to 2008 residency were ''Man on Fire: What God of Love Inspires Such Hate in the Hearts of Men'', ''Tank on Fire'' (awarded the selectors' choice Threadneedle prize in 2008), and the multi-sensory installation ''Casting a Dark Democracy'' – Shaw's haunting response to the now infamous image of the

Abu Ghraib Abu Ghraib ( or ; ) is a city in the Baghdad Governorate of Iraq, located just west of Baghdad's city center, or northwest of Baghdad International Airport. It has a population of 189,000 (2003). The old road to Jordan passes through Abu Ghra ...

prisoner, described as "one of too few works to engage unequivocally with the reality and human cost of the Iraq war." A bronze cast of ''Man on Fire'' was installed outside the

Imperial War Museum North Imperial War Museum North (sometimes referred to as IWM North) is a museum in the Trafford, Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. One of five branches of the Imperial War Museum, it explores the impact of modern confl ...

, and received the 2024

Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture The Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture is an annual award for public sculpture in the UK or Ireland. The Award is funded by the Marsh Charitable Trust and is made on the recommendation of a panel of judges under the auspices of the ...

Public and private commissions

* ''Drummer'' (2009–11), Lemon Quay,

Truro Truro (; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. It is Cornwall's county town, s ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. * ''The Minotaur'' (2008),

The Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

, Bow Street, London. * ''Rites of Dionysus'' (2000–4),

, Cornwall.

Awards and prizes

*The Jack Goldhill Award for Sculpture at The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition (2015). * Threadneedle Prize Shortlist (2009), Mall Galleries * FBA Selectors' Choice Prize: Threadneedle Prize (2008), Mall Galleries'Now for a real art prize', ''This is London''
/ref> * Kenneth Armitage Sculpture Fellowship (2006) * The Mullan Prize (2005), Royal Ulster Academy Annual Exhibition * Prince of Wales Bursary (2005), The British School at Athens * Millfield Summer Open Exhibition (2003), – First Prize * Discerning Eye (1997), Mall Galleries – Prize Winner * Delfina Studio Trust Award (1996)

References

External links

*
Tim Shaw Official WebsiteTim Shaw Official Blog

* ttps://www.sdmart.org/exhibition/tim-shaw-beyond-reason/ Tim Shaw: Beyond Reason2018 exhibition at the San Diego Museum of Art {{DEFAULTSORT:Shaw, Tim 1964 births Living people 21st-century British sculptors Alumni of Falmouth University Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University Artists from Belfast British contemporary artists British installation artists Male sculptors from Northern Ireland Royal Academicians Sculptors from Northern Ireland