2012 ECF Princess Margriet Award

Filmmaker and cultural activist John Akomfrah was chosen for his ground-breaking film oeuvre woven from perspectives that are often hidden from the mainstream narratives of European history. Born in Accra, Ghana and living and working in London, Akomfrah makes films that are at once poetic and essayistic – creative dialogues that pose intriguing questions about culture, migration, integration and intercultural exchange. He explores both urban and rural landscapes, using diverse perspectives to challenge accepted narratives of history and giving prominence to its unheralded change-makers.

The jury praised the development of Akomfrah’s oeuvre from his earliest film, the ground-breaking ‘Handsworth Songs’ (1986) to ‘Nine Muses’ (2010), an artistic meditation on migration, myth and memory that creatively weaves together layers of original footage, archival clips, sound and poetry.

Akomfrah’s long-standing body of work is a profound and multi-layered creation, championing voices that are often hidden from the mainstream discourse of European pasts.

In 1982 Akomfrah was a founding member of the seminal British film-making collective, Black Audio Film Collective and produced a broad range of work – fictional films, tape slide installations, gallery installations, experimental videos and creative documentaries. Since 1998, Akomfrah has been Director of the film and television production companies, Smoking Dogs Films (London) and Creation Rebel Films (Accra). His most recent film is ‘The Stuart Hall Project’ (2013).

The jury chose curator and writer Charles Esche, Director of the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, for the span of his curatorial oeuvre and his exceptional leadership in rethinking and opening up centres and museums of art as public spaces that show us the power and value of art in engaging with the contemporary world.

His impressive record of challenging programming (exhibitions, debates, symposia), has developed a conversation between art and society, a conversation that imagines how individual citizens can live and enact a future society together.

Since the 1990’s, Esche has – together with a roster of artists and with the teams of Tramway (Glasgow), Rooseum (Malmö) and the Van Abbemuseum – explored the many potential functions of contemporary art centres and museums as important agents in and of the public sphere. He is co-founder and co-editor of Afterall Journal/Afterall Books – a contemporary art publisher based at Central St. Martins College

At a time of increased entertainment of culture and decreased access to public spaces, the jury regarded Esche’s work as a curator and leader of institutions is of utmost value. His ability to create meaningful and urgent debates within and beyond contemporary art is followed by many practitioners around the world and acts as a powerful inspiration.