Tomma Abts - Abstract Art is OK but not KO.
In December 2006 German born artist Tomma Abts went down in history as the first female artist to win the coveted Turner Prize. Tomma Abts accomplished this noteworthy historical victory by beating off three other - worthy finalists.
In no particular order of importance these were - sculptress Rebecca Warren who was the fancied hot favourite with many bookies, "billboard artist" Mark Titchner - and finally film maker Phil Collins...(No not him of Genesis fame!).
By winning the Turner prize Tomma Abts added a cool 25,000 pounds sterling to her bank balance. However it's often said that when it comes to the Turner Prize the exposure one gets from winning is worth far more than the cash value...
What does Tomma Abts do? Well she actually paints abstract art; usually in oils or acrylics. - something of a novelty for the Turner Prize - some would say! Tomma Abts was originally selected for her solo art exhibitions at Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland, and Greengrassi, London.
The Tate Gallery has lauded her "rigorous and consistent approach to painting" .Furthermore this prestigous gallery comments on the "intimate and compelling canvases" of Tomma Abts and how she "enriches the language of abstract art"....I think they like her - a lot!
With such fullsome praise for Tomma around - it isn't difficult to see why she won the 2006 Turner Prize. As for my thoughts?...well - I think Tomma Abts is "OK" without being "KO".
Tomma seems fond of constructing her images by repeating endlessly varying geometric base shapes or elements. Hardly original - one would think however, despite my initial cynicism - I have found images by Tomma Abts to be very evocative and quite memorable.
Curiously - every work by Tomma Abts is said to measure precisely 48 x 38 cms...I'm told that there's nothing particularly significant about these dimensions. She just likes that size!
The titles of art works by Tomma Abts - such as "Veeke" are said to be simply lifted from a dictionary of German first names! Well why not? It beats just giving her paintings numbers!
Based on photographs of some of the prize winning work by Tomma Abts I would say that unlike previous winners of the Turner Prize - Tomma's work is pretty accessible to the general public. Furthermore the artwork of Tomma Abts could not conceivably offend even the most "dyed in the wool" and reactionary of "Mary Whitehouse" types.
In the end it's just my personal opinion but I do believe that it's entirely posible that Tomma Abts will go on to become a household name - within her own lifetime...Of course she could also disappear without trace from the media - and our minds in the blink of an eye, for precisely the same reasons.
About The Author: Flo Cordon loves Art. Read her stimulating articles on 2006 Turner Prize Winner Tomma Abts.
Flo provides a whole new perspective on Abstract Art.