The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize is the United Kingdom's leading award in contemporary drawing.
Initially awarded in 1991 as the Malvern Open Drawing Prize, it became the Cheltenham Open Drawing Competition in 1994, and then the Jerwood Drawing Prize from 2001 until 2017.[1] It is claimed to be the largest and longest running annual open exhibition for drawing in the UK.[2]
It was established by Malvern Drawing Associates in 1991 to promote excellence in contemporary drawing practice and moved to Cheltenham in 1994.[3][4]
From 2001 until 2017 it was funded by the Jerwood Charitable Foundation and organised by Wimbledon College of Art.[5] The exhibition is open to entry by all artists resident or domiciled in the United Kingdom. It takes place annually, and includes an exhibition of all the shortlisted drawings which then forms a touring exhibition.[6]
The Trinity Buoy Wharf Trust, which since 1998 has used income from properties at Trinity Buoy Wharf in east London to fund arts projects,[7] took over sponsorship of the Prize in 2018.
In 2004 approximately 2,000 entries were received.[8] In 2011 the competition accepted approximately 3,500 entries. A first prize of £6,000 and a second prize of £3,000 were awarded. In addition there were two student awards, each with a £1,000 prize.[2] In 2016 the first prize was £8,000 with a second prize of £5,000 and two runners up prizes of £2,000 each.[9] In 2019, the first prize was £8,000; the runner-up received £5,000.[10]
Previous first prize winners include:[11]
