Webchat with Keith Tyson

This is the transcript of a webchat with Turner Prize winner Keith Tyson which took place on the Channel 4 site on 9 December 2002.

Chat Editor: Welcome to tonight's live chat with Keith Tyson, winner of the Turner Prize 2002!

Keith Tyson: Hello I'm here everyone, ready for your questions...

Yogi: I saw your installation at the Vience Biennale and thought that it was incredibly dynamic, do you feel in anyway that the context of the Turner Prize show at the Tate and the media debate that surrounds it somehow deflates or reduces the power of the work itself?

Keith Tyson: I don't think that it deflates the power of anyone's work but I think maybe it deflates the ability of the press to focus on it properly. It's become a news story rather than an art story. But I think the work speaks for itself.

Yves: How long have you been with the Anthony Reynolds Gallery and what kind of support does a gallerist offer to an artist once they have had achieved winning the Turner Prize?

Keith Tyson: I've been with them for 8 years. A gallerist in terms of support is a filter on one level between artists and all of the people trying to get hold of them. They also deal with archives, records of work and all the financial side of things. But it's also somebody else to chew the fat over with and do a post mortem of the night before.

will: time plays an important role in your work, why is this?

Keith Tyson: Because we all exist in time.

Tinman: Do you share a studio with other artist's, is this an important support network for your practice?

Keith Tyson: I am in a studio that has several artists in it. Obviously it's good for gossip but I'm not sure to what extent it's a good influence on the work because you tend to spend time too much time drinking coffee rather than painting.

natasia: what have you been doing since the awards ceremony?

Keith Tyson: You're briskly whisked off for a press interview, followed by paparazzi style photography, then a very drunken after-party, then very drunk in the hotel room, then very hung-over in the morning, then more press, then some radio interviews, then half an hour's sleep then a webchat for Channel 4!..

natasia: sounds like fun, apart from the press interview

Keith Tyson: Heh, yes well, if you take the press interviews out you're left with half an hours sleep and beer which doesn't sound so exciting.

XtReMe: what, in your opinion, is the one most important factor for a good piece of art?

Keith Tyson: I think an ability to communicate something, however nebulous, to a wide range of people. That's the most important thing.

Tinman: Who are your favourite artists? Dead or Alive?

Keith Tyson: The musician Aphex Twin (both dead and alive).

joel: good taste :)

Keith Tyson: Because I believe that he creates for creations sake, experimenting to create things that are novel, exciting and dynamic and he works with a freedom which inspires me in a way that a lot of visual art doesn't.

lilmizponylover: What type of art is your favourite work?

Keith Tyson: I think you mean which type of art in terms of conceptual or painting or sculpture etc...so I don't have a preference. I believe that the form of a work should be dependent on the idea that the artist is trying to manifest.

Yogi: How long do you spend on each of your drawings, do they relate to On Kawara's date drawings in that each only takes one day?

Keith Tyson: Some of the drawings take a day. Some take 10 minutes. Some can take a week. But yes, on average, they happen daily. They are intended to imply a form of journal.

natasia: where does your interest in science come from?

Keith Tyson: I can't really answer that, I'm just interested in science.

XtReMe: How important are other people's views to the design of your work? If you know no one but you will like your piece will you design it?

Keith Tyson: Yes, because often the audience for a piece isn't the immediate audience but one at a later date and in fact work that I have made in the past that I haven't liked myself I have later come to find that it's some of my strongest stuff.

Carla: Where do you feel you get most of your inspiration from?
lilmizponylover : what kind of inspiration do you get from painting?

Keith Tyson: I get my inspiration from the world around me - an article in a newspaper, a record, a scientific discovery, a piece of design, a walk in the park. It can be anything at all that makes me think obliquely about the world around me and inspires me to produce something that I think is interesting and that is hopefully interesting to others.

joel: Have yourself/ your representatives taken a proactuve approach in seeking opportunities for yourself or has it been 'We'll call you' overall?

Keith Tyson: It's hard to say. It's a bit of both really.

klil: Which art school did you attend? Do you think art school produce 'artists' and if yes, how?
Eva: Did you do an Masters degree, if so where etc. who were your tutors?

Keith Tyson: I only did art education up to BA. I think art education is essential in terms of giving you a wide grounding of art history and art criticism and practice. However I do admit that I have spent 10 years unlearning everything, but I think one must first do it to be able to react against it. I did my BA in Brighton. I think art schools produce the potential for artists. Without art schools there would still be artists, but without artists there would be no art schools.

joel: Do you think there's any mileage in the idea that a formal art training just encourages conformist art? Can an individual create valid artwork without intentionally juxtaposing it against a background of art history?

Keith Tyson: I think anything done with enough commitment to one's cause will reap a reward but there are no hard and fast rules about practice; to be fair art is not something which one can predict but the first person to step up and stake a claim to some extent is proved right.

Tinman: If you could rename the Turner Prize after a) a British Artist or b) an International Artist who would you rename the Turner Prize after?

Keith Tyson: Um...I think, given its history, it would be a shame to change its name. It would be like changing the windscale nuclear power station to the alternative name of Sellafield - it still carries its history.

joel: In the UK, how much do you think that success as a professional artist is indexed to social class?

Keith Tyson: Over the last decade any claim that the working classes are excluded has been disproved and to be honest although many of the galleries may be run by high-class types, the people they are showing to form the full spectrum of British culture.

Yogi: Do you have a favourite gallery or recent exhibition?

Keith Tyson: No, I tend to take a little bit of many things like the dynamics of one gallery mixed with the energy of a certain artist, but I find it very hard to pick one artist or exhibition as a 'favourite'. If there was someone that was making work that fulfilled all my needs I would be going to see their work rather than sitting in a cold studio making my own, this is a long answer to the fact that I just can't think of anything at the moment :)

Eva: What ambitions do you have now that you have won the Turner Prize. What next?

Keith Tyson: My ambitions are, in many ways, the same as they were before. Constantly striving to make the best work that I possibly can with my own limited abilities.

Steve Bettinson: As an Ulverston boy myself, I was wondering if anything from the area has been an inspiration?

Keith Tyson: Hoad Monument. Only joking! But as my first 18 years were spent in the area I think there's very little that I do that isn't rooted in that area somewhere.

Pink: As I live in the Lake District I seem to have too much beautiful and detailed scenery to Inspire me. Any tips for keeping it simple and not getting too bogged down in detail?
Steve Bettinson : He he, I know the feeling. Cheers mate and well done, the town is proud of you :)

Keith Tyson: I found that living in the city for a while greatly increases your appreciation of living in the Lake District.

joel: How long have you been supporting yourself purely from your artwork?

Keith Tyson: 2 years, no 3 years actually.

Eva: An article yesterday's Observer discussed the value of nomination and winning the prize to the artists involved, one of the conclusions that it came to was that the overall value of the Turner Prize is greater to the 'brand' of the Tate rather than the individual artist's. Apart from the obvious 20,000, what does being the Turner Prize Winner 2002 mean for to you both personally and professionally?

Keith Tyson: I think that win or lose, the prize allows you an opportunity to show your work to 100,000 people. Based on today’s culture that cannot be sniffed at. After that the feeling is very similar to getting your exam results. I guess in the long run it doesn't really matter, but as they are opening that envelope I can assure you it does.

joel: Do you think that the artists that have done well in the Turner Prize over the years have been those whose work or persona have produced vibrant sound bites for the media?

Keith Tyson: Not exclusively, joel, no. Yes there have been some, but if you look at the list carefully there are many that don't really lend themselves to simple explanations. I think the list of winners is pretty diverse really, more so now that I'm on the end of it ; )

Matt: What is the importance of Art in a scientific world?

Keith Tyson: To quote an old Hollywood film 'Art is what makes working out all those theories worthwhile'.

joel: Thanks
Matt: Thankyou
XtReMe: nice one! keep up the good work!
klil: thanks
Carla: Goodbye and good luck :)
Yves: cheers

Keith Tyson: I'm now going to fill my tired and hungry belly, hope you enjoyed our little chat.
Keith Tyson leaves the room
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