Drawing Breath: An exhibition of contemporary drawing marking ten years of the Jerwood Drawing Prize, the annual open drawing exhibition in the UK

The ‘Drawing Breath’ exhibition was originated by Taylor to celebrate the ten year anniversery of the annual open exhibition the ‘Jerwood Drawing Prize’ (previously the ‘Cheltenham Open Drawing Exhibition’), which provides a forum for the dissemination of current drawing practice by artists resident or domiciled in the UK. The exhibition aimed to make accessible the resource established through the annual exhibitons, and through this to contribute to the knowledge base about drawing in the UK.

The exhibition aimed to contextualise the annual exhibitions by bringing together drawings of the selectors who draw, the awardees of the exhibition prizes since the inception of the project (1994), and included artists who have been recognised for their contribution to drawing in other arenas. The exhibition catalogue, funded by the Henry Moore Foundation and Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, comprises an essay by Taylor; a selection of essays by the annual selectors; an image by each artist in the show and biographical details; an anthology of all artists and works included in the shows (1994-2006); and photographs from the archives. The 81 exhibitors include Basil Beattie, Jason Brooks, Eileen Cooper, Ken Currie, Adam Dant, Ian Davenport, Stephen Farthing, William Feaver, Peter de Francia, Ansul Krut, Marco Livingstone, Cornelia Parker, Deanna Petherbridge, Tom Phillips, Amikam Toren and Sarah Woodfine.

Shown at the gallery at wimbledon College of Art, London (2006), an expanded version toured to the NAS Galleries, Sydney, Australia (2007), NAFA Galleries, Singapore (2007), RWA, Bristol (2008), Robert Gordon University Gallery, Aberdeen (2008), supported by British Council Australia, Hong Kong Land and the host venues. The exhibition has been extensively covered to date, and a symposium held that focussed on the exhibition and its comparator the ‘Dobell Prize’ in Australia. Taylor was assisted by Karen Bateson (editorial), Miranda Clarke (exhibiton co-ordinator) and Paul Thomas (co-founder).