En Liang Khong (2009, Ancient and Modern History) was announced as the winner of the 2023 Observer / Anthony Burgess Prize for Arts Journalism at a ceremony at the Art Workers’ Guild in London on 21st February.
En’s review of an exhibition of Terratypes by artist Tanoa Sasraku, a Plymouth-born artist whose work explores landscape, identity and vision, won first prize in the annual competition. He received £3,000 and his review was published in the Observer on 5th March.
Announcing the winner, the prize judges (Fiona Maddocks and Sarah Donaldson from the Observer, and Andrew Biswell from the International Anthony Burgess Foundation), described En’s submission as: “Beautifully described and full of rich imagery, the winning review took us from the sodden wetlands to the earthiness of the Highlands, from childhood memory to fleeting contemplation, all the while asking larger questions about art.”
Speaking to En about his achievement, he said: “I was absolutely thrilled to receive this award. It was such a pleasure to write about a wonderfully talented artist (and an exhibition which I discovered completely by chance), while also using the review form to ask broader questions about art history and material memory. I’m grateful to all the editors and writers in my life who have been a formative influence on my work. And I owe a great deal to my brilliant tutors at LMH – Christina Kuhn, who taught me so much about thinking and writing – as well as Grant Tapsell, Michael Broers and Clive Holmes.”
Since graduating from LMH, En first worked as a journalist at openDemocracy, then joined Frieze magazine, where he became a senior editor. He has spent the last three years at ArtReview as director of digital and later this month will join The Telegraph, where he has been appointed Deputy Saturday Arts Editor.
