Presenting the much-coveted Alt Power 100 Artlyst 2022. This is Artlyst’s way of acknowledging our industry’s hard work and achievements, as we see and curate it. As most major art exhibitions and events have slowly resurfaced post pandemic, it was possible to travel freely and see first hand major art events.
As always, the Alt Power 100 Artlyst brings a clear and fresh perspective to the table, honouring the known faces of our industry while championing the personalities behind the scenes curating, organising, and helping to enrich our communities. – Paul Carter Robinson Artlyst CEO – Sara Faith Associate Editor (Top Photo: Sonia Boyce © Artlyst)
The Artlyst Alt Power 100 Top 10
1. Sonia Boyce – Artist and joint winner of the Golden Lion at Venice Biennale
2. Simone Leigh – Artist and joint winner of the Golden Lion at Venice Biennale
3. Cecilia Alemani – Artistic Director 2022 Venice Biennale
4. Nan Goldin Photographer/Activist responsible for bringing down the corrupt Sackler family dynasty.
5. Veronica Ryan – Winner of 2022 Turner Prize
6. Katy Hessel – Author of The Story of Art Without Men
7. William Kentridge His retrospective exhibition at the Royal Academy is monumental.
8. Cornelia Parker CBE RA – English visual artist, best known for her sculpture and installation art. 2022 Tate Britain exhibition
9. Theaster Gates – Creator of the 2022 Serpentine Pavilion
10. Viktor Pinchuk – Donated proceeds from the sale of a $10m Jeff Koons to support Ukrainian soldiers and civilians needing prosthetics.
Alt Power 100 2022 Artlyst A-Z Order
1. Sir David Adjaye OBE RA – Ghanaian British architect, designer of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. In 2021, David Adjaye revealed his design for the District Hospitals project across Ghana, Accra and The Africa Institute in Sharjah, UAE.
2. Alayo Akinkigbe – Art curator and historian, celebrated for the @ablackhistoryofart Instagram account
3. Cecilia Alemani – Director 2022 Venice Biennale
4. Jane Alison – Head of Visual Arts Barbican since 2013. In 2021 the Barbican featured retrospectives of Jean Dubuffet and Isamu Noguchi
5. Sepake Angiama – Curator and educator, initiator of Under the Mango Tree: Sites of Learning. She likes to work with artists who disrupt or provoke the social sphere through actions, design, dance and architecture.
6. Michael Armitage – Artist, became a Royal Academician in 2022
7. Maria Balshaw CBE – Director of Tate since 2017, first female Director of the Tate
8. Banksy – Political street artist. Active in 2022 with mural installations on bombed out buildings in the Ukraine
9. Rana Begum RA – Artist for her show at Pizhangar Manor and Art Gallery
10. Erica Bolton/Jane Quinn – PR gurus at Bolton & Quinn Ltd.
11. Osei Bonsu – Curator of International Art, Tate Modern responsible for organising exhibitions, developing the museum’s collection, and broadening the representation of African and African diaspora artists.
12. Dr Bruce Boucher – Director of the Sir John Soane’s Museum.
13. Sonia Boyce OBE – British Afro-Caribbean artist and Professor of Black Art and Design at University of the Arts London- selected by the British Council to represent Britain at the 59th Venice Biennale and winner of the Golden Lion award 2022
14. Sir Frank Bowling OBE RA – Guyana-born British Artist – knighted at the age of 87 in a ceremony at Windsor Castle
15. A A Bronson – Artist, healer, curator, founder member General Idea whom had a retrospective at National Gallery Canada June – November 2022
16. Matthew Burrows MBE – Artist/ Founder of the Artists Support Pledge hashtag that continues to help thousands of artists during the pandemic
17. Guy Casely-Hayford OBE – British curator cultural historian, broadcaster and lecturer with Ghanaian roots and Director of V&A East
18. Sheryll Catto – Co-Director ActionSpace, a charity that advocates for diversity within the contemporary visual arts sector, supporting neurodivergent artists to develop their artistic practice.
19. Aaron Cezar – Director of Delfina Foundation, an independent, non-profit foundation dedicated to facilitating artistic exchange and developing creative practise through residencies, partnerships and public programming.
20. Martin Clark – Director of the Camden Arts Centre
21. Edith Devaney – Writer, curator, former Contemporary Curator and Head of Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, recently appointed as David Hockney’s Managing Director
22. Edmund de Waal CBE – Artist, master potter, author. In 2021 he published his latest book, Letters to Camondo, which formed the basis for an exhibition in Paris, The Hare with Amber Eyes exhibition opened at The Jewish Museum New York, The Living Hand exhibition opened at Henry Moore Foundation
23. Olafur Eliasson Danish-Icelandic Artist known for sculptures and large-scale installation art that employed basic materials such as light, water, and air temperature.
24. Ekow Eshun – Journalist, broadcaster, curator, Chair of the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group, curator of The Black Fantastic at Hayward Gallery
25. Alex Farquharson – Director Tate Britain
26. Hedwig Fijen – Director of Manifesta, European Nomadic Biennial
27. Gabriele Finaldi – Director of the National Gallery, London
28. Forensic Architecture – Research agency based at Goldsmiths, University of London, investigating human rights violations, including violence committed by states, police forces, militaries, and corporations.
29. Ryan Gander – Artist elected Royal Academician 2022
30. Theaster Gates – American social practice installation artist. 2021 saw the start of a multi-venue presentation of his work at the Whitechapel Gallery, which will continue at the V&A and Serpentine galleries in 2022.
31. Liz Gilmore – Director Hastings Contemporary – exhibitions in 2022 included Making Waves, Seafaring and Ibrahim El-Salahi.
32. RoseLee Goldberg – Founding Director and Chief Curator of Performa. The 2021 edition was a free event that took place entirely outdoors in New York.
33. Nan Goldin – American photographer who highlighted the OxyContin epidemic and isolated the Sackler family’s role as the manufacturers. The Met dropped the Sackler name from its building, as did the Louvre and numerous other global institutions following the lead. The documentary film of her activism has been shortlisted for an Oscar.
34. Jane Hamlyn – Chair Paul Hamlyn Foundation Director of The Frith Street Gallery.
35. Michael Heizer – American land artist specializing in large-scale and site-specific sculptures unveiled his mile and a half wide project in Central Eastern Nevada
36. Margot Heller OBE – Director of South London Gallery, was responsible for embedding the gallery in its local community while establishing its international reputation.
37. Nathaniel Hepburn – Director Sussex Modern and Charleston Farmhouse
38. Katy Hessel – British art historian, broadcaster, writer and curator. Her bestselling book The Story of Art without men was voted Waterstones book of the year
39. Joe Hill – Director of Towner Gallery, Eastbourne – to host 2023 Turner Prize Exhibiton
40. Paul Hobson – Director of Modern Art Oxford.
41. David Hockney OM CH RA – British painter, His new immersive experience in London will be mega!
42. Jenny Holzer – American Artist – winner of the 2022 Whitechapel Art Icon Prize
43. Tristram Hunt – Director of V&A since 2017
44. Waldemar Januszczak – English Art Critic and television documentary producer and presenter
45. Arthur Jafa, an American video artist, in 2022 he showed at LUMA in Arles
46. Sir Isaac Julien CBE RA – British Filmmaker and installation artist – knighted in 2022
47. Samson Kambalu – Fourth plinth commission 2022
48. William Kentridge – South African artist for his show at the RA
49. Simone Leigh – First Black woman to represent the USA at the 59th Venice Biennale – joint winner of Golden Lion award 2022
50. Clare Lilley – Appointed Director of YSP in 2022, curator of Frieze Sculpture
51. Hugh Locke – Tate Britain Commission 2022
52. John Mackechnie – Director of Glasgow Print Studio celebrating 50th anniversary
53. Seema Manchanda – Director of The Showroom, chair of the Black Training and Enterprise Group (BTEG), a national race equality charity.
54. Tim Marlow – Critic, broadcaster and Director of The Design Museum
55. Sarah McCrory – Director of Goldsmith’s CCA Gallery set up to enhance Goldsmiths’ reputation for excellence and innovation in the arts.
56. Ibrahim Mahama – Ghanaian author and artist of monumental installations, At Frieze London this year he partnered with Deutsche Bank, will partner to support the fourth iteration of its Emerging Curators Fellowship, an initiative aimed at supporting emerging curators who identify as Black or people of color and are based in the U.K.
57. Frances Morris – Outgoing Director of Tate Modern
58. Sarah Munro – Director of the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
59. Andrew Nairne OBE – Director Kettle’s Yard
60. Helen Nisbet – Curator of Art Night which for the first time took place across the UK for a full month
61. Cornelia Parker CBE RA – English visual artist, best known for her sculpture and installation art. 2022 Tate Britain exhibition
62. James Payne – Great Art Explained video series created by artist/art historian James Payne to demystify some of the world’s great works of art. Recently launched Great Art Cities explained on youtube.
63. Adriano Pedrosa – Artistic Director Venice Biennale 2024 currently Artistic Director of Museu de Arte de Sao Paulo
64. Sir Jack and Lady Frances Petchey (Frances Segelman Sculptor) philanthropic inspiring young inner-city people to achieve
65. Michael Petry – Multi-media artist, writer and curator. Director of MOCA London, co-founder of the Museum of Installation
66. Heather Phillipson – Artist working in a variety of media including video, sculpture, music, large-scale installations, nominated for 2022 Turner Prize
67. Viktor Pinchuk – Donated proceeds from the sale of a $10m Jeff Koons to support Ukrainian soldiers and civilians needing prosthetics.
68. Ingrid Pollard – Artist and photographer. nominated 2022 Turner Prize
69. Victoria Pomery OBE – CEO of The Box, Plymouth
70. Ralph Rugoff, Director Hayward Gallery
71. Veronica Ryan – OBE Montserrat-born British sculptor. winner 2022 Turner Prize
72. Rebecca Salter PRA – Artist President of the Royal Academy of Arts
73. Rebecca Scott and Mark Woods – Artist power couple – founders of Cross Lane Projects in Kendal Cumbria
74. Sir Nicholas Serota – Chair of Arts Council England
75. Stephen Snoddy – British artist and Director of The New Art Gallery Walsall
76. Barak adé Soleil / Chinasa Vivian Ezugha – Co-Directors LADA (Live Art Development Agency) supporting contemporary culture’s most radical and inventive artists, practices and ideas.82.
77. Yinka Shonibare CBE RA – British-Nigerian Artist. In 2022 he opened new spaces in Lagos to promote creativity and sustainability
78. Anthony Spira – Director of MK Gallery, 2022 Turner Prize Judge
79. Alexander Sturgis – Director of Ashmolean Museum Oxford
80. Bridget Riley CH CBE – English Op Art painter who turned 91 this year. Currently has a show at Art Institute Chicago.
81. Bob and Roberta Smith OBE – Contemporary British Artist is known for painting slogan-bearing signage to support various political causes.
82. Deborah Swallow – Outgoing Director of Courtauld including the gallery.
83. Gilane Tawardros – New Director Whitechapel Art Gallery
84. Paul Thompson – Vice-Chancellor of the Royal College of Art, the world’s most influential postgraduate institution of art
85. Jeremy Till – Head of Central Saint Martins
86. Wolfgang Tillmans – German photographer. Retrospective at MOMA, New York in 2022
87. Russell Tovey / Robert Diament – Talk Art podcast by actor Russell Tovey and gallerist Robert Diament
88. Dr Nicola Triscott – CEO FACT, Liverpool the UK’s leading organisation for the support and exhibition of art, film and new media.
89. Gavin Turk – Artist – YBA whose work goes from strength to strength
90. Fatos Ustek – Independent Curator/writer, She is founding co-director of FRANK Fair Artist Pay, with artists Anne Hardy and Lindsay Seers. Named as 2023 curator of Frieze Sculpture
91. Cecilia Vicuña – Artist Hyundai Commission Tate Modern 2022
92. Simon Wallis – Director Hepworth Wakefield
93. Kara Walker – American contemporary painter, silhouettist, printmaker, installation artist and filmmaker who explores race, gender, sexuality, violence and identity in her work.
94. Clarrie Wallis – Director of Turner Contemporary
95. Sin Wai Kin – Artist nominated for 2022 Turner Prize
96. John Waters – Cult film director donated 372 works of art by 125 artists to the Baltimore Museum of Art
97. Zoé Whitley – Director of Chisenhale Gallery
98. Lynette Yiadom-Boakye – British painter and writer whose 2021 exhibition has returned to Tate Britain
99 Anita and Poju Zabludowicz – Collectors, Founders the Zabludowicz Collection, London a free exhibition space
100. Mariam Zulfiqar – Director of Artangel
And Special mention to : Dame Paula Rego –Portuguese-British painter who died earlier this year
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