Archive · 11 Dec 2025
Nnena Kalu Wins 2025 Turner Prize
Nnena Kalu is an artist who was born in Glasgow to Nigerian parents and raised in London.
She has a learning disability and doesn't speak much, but she creates amazing art.
She uses things like old tapes, fabric, and cardboard to make big, colorful sculptures that hang in the air.
Her art has been shown in many places, like Liverpool and Barcelona.
Recently, she won a very important art prize called the Turner Prize.
The prize is worth a lot of money, and she was the first person with a learning disability to win it.
The judges loved her art because it's big, colorful, and full of energy.
Her winning piece is like a big, happy cocoon made of recycled materials.
You can see her art and the other winners at a gallery in Bradford until next year.
Nnena Kalu, a 59-year-old neurodivergent artist with a learning disability, won the 2025 Turner Prize for her bold, hanging sculptures and vivid abstract drawings.
She is the first artist with a learning disability to win the prestigious award, receiving £25,000 ($33,000).
Born in Glasgow to Nigerian parents and raised in London, Kalu's art is driven by rhythmic and repetitive gestures.
Her sculptures feature recycled materials like VHS tape, fabric, and cardboard, and have been exhibited internationally.
The jury praised her 'bold and compelling' abstract creations, noting her impressive command of scale, composition, and color.
- Who
- Nnena Kalu, a 59-year-old neurodivergent artist with a learning disability and limited verbal communication.
- What
- Nnena Kalu won the 2025 Turner Prize for her bold, hanging sculptures and vivid abstract drawings.
- When
- The award ceremony took place on December 9.
- Where
- The ceremony was held in Bradford, and her work is displayed at Cartwright Hall Art Gallery.
- Why
- Her work was praised for its bold and compelling abstract creations, capturing gesture in sculptural form.
- Artist
- Nnena Kalu
- Prize
- Turner Prize 2025
- Prize Amount
- £25,000 ($33,000)
- Ceremony Location
- Bradford, northern England
- Ceremony Date
- December 9
- Birth Year
- 1966
- Birth Place
- Glasgow
- Parents' Origin
- Nigerian
- Artistic Organization
- ActionSpace
- Supporting Facilitator
- Charlotte Hollinshead
- Materials Used
- VHS tape, parcel tape, cling film, fabric, rope, ribbon, string, cardboard
- Notable Exhibitions
- Drawing 21 (2021), Hanging Sculpture 1 to 10 (2024)
- Jury Leader
- Alex Farquharson
- Fellow Nominees
- Mohammed Sami, Zadie Xa, Rene Matić
- Exhibition Venue
- Cartwright Hall Art Gallery, Bradford
- Exhibition Duration
- Until February 2026