David Hockney launches drawing competition for Bradford City of Culture
Artist David Hockney is launching a national drawing competition for the Bradford City of Culture programme. Hockney’s event is one of many that will take place in the Yorkshire city over the course of 2025, including the Turner Prize and an outdoor event helmed by Steven Frayne, aka Dynamo.
In addition, there will be a number of music events, such as a brass band celebration of Bradford and its South Asian community. In terms of literature, Bradford is planning a series of tributes to the Brontë sisters, who were born in Thornton, Yorkshire.
The creative director of Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, Shanaz Gulzar, has said in a statement, “The UK is invited to Bradford in 2025. Not only will audiences want to be celebrating everything that makes Bradford great, but it’ll also be a part of the change for this vibrant city and district.”
Magician Dynamo will kick the year off with his new show, Rise, which is based on the story of his grandfather teaching him magic tricks in the city. The Turner Prize will take place in Cartwright Hall and includes nominated works from Claudette Johnson and Pio Abad.
David Hockney was born in Bradford in 1937 and claimed that he learned how to be an artist by pushing a pram containing materials around the city, which he painted and sketched. Hockney has invited people of “all ages” from across the country to take part in his project to “reflect our everyday lives.”
Elsewhere, conductor Charles Hazlewood will be showing his collaborative piece with Jeremy Deller for a “sonic journey” that will also involved local Bradford musicians. The project will take place all across the district of Bradford, from “moorland crag” to the city centre.
There have been concerns about whether Bradford will be prepared to host the year-long event, and with a £45 million infrastructure rebuilding taking part in the city, the hopes are that it will be completed in time, allowing for easier pedestrianisation.
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Lisa Nandy, said of the programme, “This celebration of talent born and bred in the city will help to get more people of all ages and backgrounds involved in cultural events, creating good jobs and opportunities for young people.”
Bradford UK City of Culture is set to kick off in January, 2025, and bring the cultural wonders of Yorkshire to the UK public and bring in much needed funding and investment for the city itself.
