Whats going on

This month, Pavel Bϋchler from Manchester was announced the winner of the third annual Northern Art Prize and presented with a cheque for £16,500 by judge and Turner Prize winning artist Richard Deacon at a packed awards event held at Leeds Art Gallery. 

Originally from Prague, but now resident in the North West, the 58-year-old was one of four finalists in the award which is open to artists in the north of England.

Bϋchler displayed seven of his most recent pieces, three of which have never been shown before, in the Northern Art Prize exhibition. Eclipse, using nine 1950s Leitz Prado slide projectors to shine circles of light on the gallery wall, was a favourite among the judging panel, which included the gallery's curator of exhibitions, Tanja Pirsig-Marshall.

She comments; "Büchler has been consistently influential to a huge amount of people throughout his career, as a practitioner and teacher. We were particularly impressed with Eclipse which we felt to be a very strong piece of work. We would also like to congratulate all the shortlisted artists on their contributions to the exhibition, the success of the prize continues to enhance the contemporary visual arts scene in the North."

The runners-up, duo Nick Crowe and Ian Rawlinson, Rachel Goodyear and Matt Stokes each got £1,500.

The Northern Art Prize exhibition runs at Leeds Art Gallery until 21 February 2010.