Artist Duncan Campbell wins 2014 Turner Prize

Duncan Campbell, the 42-year-old Irish-born artist known for his cinematic installations, has won the prestigious Turner Prize for a piece directly inspired by a film by the pioneering French directors Alain Resnais and Chris Marker.

“It for Others” is an experimental, non-fiction installation that addresses themes such as the commoditizing of cultural artifacts. The work was inspired by the 1953 short documentary “Les Statues Meurent Aussi” (“Statues Also Die”), co-directed by Resnais, Marker and Ghislain Cloquet.

The 1953 documentary, which takes the form of a filmic essay, explores African cultural artifacts and the effects of colonialism and commercialization on African culture.

Campbell’s piece is also essayistic in nature and brings together archive footage, documentary material and some fictional elements. The artist also worked with the Michael Clark Company, a British dance group, to illustrate some of the themes in the installation.

“It For Others” was shown at the 2013 Venice Biennale and has been exhibited with “Les Statues Meurent Aussi.”

Campbell, who is receiving a monetary award of about $40,000, was one of four nominees for this year’s Turner Prize. The other finalists were Ciara Phillips, James Richards and Tris Vonna-Michell.

The award ceremony on Monday saw actor Chiwetel Ejiofor present the prize to Campbell.

The Turner Prize is awarded annually to a British visual artist under the age of 50. The prize is presented by the Tate in London and is decided by a jury. Last year’s winner was Laure Prouvost.

Notable past winners include Damien Hirst, Wolfgang Tillmans and Oscar-nominated director Steve McQueen.

Twitter: @DavidNgLAT