Turner Prize 2004

The first room, with stuff by Jeremy Deller, was OK. I vaguely remember about him getting a brass band to play 'What Time Is Love'. Bill Drummond was his 'celebrity champion' on the audio guide. The film he made in Texas was quite affecting. It really bugged me when some idiots around me just took it as opportunity to snort derisively at the woman in the diner. The ending, with the bats, was extraordinary. At first it was beautiful, then it started to make me feel a bit queasy. I started to think it was looped in some way, but I don't think it was, actually. They should show it on TV.

My favourite by far was the Kutlug Ataman, though. I was really overwhelmed by it. If you get a chance to see it then do leave yourself enough time to sit and listen to a few of the interviews properly - I think it's really worth it. Make sure you don't miss the man in the moustache and striped shirt, on the screen closest to where you go in, I think. Probably helps to go when it's not too busy, too. Even on the Monday afternoon I was there, there were lots of people inadvertently standing in the way of the projectors as they wandered in. I just thought the whole thing totally transcended the rest of the nominees, anyway, so I was annoyed when I got to the end of the exhibition and found that Ataman was hardly mentioned on the comments cards that people had pinned up. One said something like "Boring! Don't people know video installations are totally old hat?" I guess they were sort of joking, but it made me cross anyway.

If people expressed a preference at all, it tended to be for the final nominee, Yinka Shonibare. Maybe I was a bit worn out by then, but his stuff did little for me. It seemed like academic art to me, and though he seemed like a nice guy on the commentary, I wasn't very interested in what he said he was trying to do. I lot of people praising him on the cards seemed to be calling him by his first name, which made me a bit suspicious, like they were just rooting for him cause he was everyone's mate on the London art scene. That's probably unfair, though.

Anyway, Kutlug Ataman for me, all the way.